Archive for category Music Monday
How to obtain a US iTunes Account
Posted by Hans Haupt in Internet, Meme, Music Monday, Seriously?!, Technology, WTF on 28 August 2010
Time and time again I am asked how I managed to obtain access to a US iTunes store account. Well, the answer is fairly simple. I just created one.
I know what you are thinking: “How the heck did he do that”?
Music Monday: ‘Waka Waka’
Posted by Hans Haupt in Entertainment, Meme, Music Monday, Seriously?! on 31 May 2010
It is Music Monday and thus time for another Vivaciously Varietal Vibe!
-
Flavour: Pop
-
Artist: Shakira feat. Freshly Ground
-
Album: CD Single
Rationale: For those who do not know, and unless you have been hovelled in some cave somewhere, South Africa will be hosting the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
Other than our beautiful country scrambling to get ready for the event, quite a process in patience for its citizens, FIFA have released the official 2010 FIFA World Cup song.
Although many South Africans were rather peeved that the song was not performed entirely by a South Africans, I do believe that FIFA did the right thing by approaching Shakira. Truth be told, and in my opinion, we needed a famously ‘international’ artist to carry the song. Granted, we do have a lot of talent in South Africa but the problem is, how much of that talent is really recognised by the rest of the world? Knowing FIFA, they wanted to make a big splash and there was no better way to do that then to associate their brand with an already popular and well known artist.
Besides, our very own Freshly Ground feature in the song. Take that, all you naysayers. I still think they should have thrown in a few Vuvuzela’s for authenticity… *runs off to irritate the neighbours with his own Vuvu*.
Check the song out below and let me know what you think!
As always, whenever I post about Vivaciously Varietal Vibes on Music Monday’s, simply click on the name of the song to be taken to a web page that displays the songs lyrics.
Until the next time, “Milieunairs”!
Music Monday: ‘Broken Open’
Posted by Hans Haupt in Entertainment, Life, Music Monday on 8 February 2010
Hey Milieunairs,
It is Music Monday and thus time for another Vivaciously Varietal Vibe!
-
Flavour: Pop
-
Artist: Adam Lambert
-
Album: For Your Entertainment
-
Song: Broken Open
Rationale: I have, on many an occasion, written about songs which I have labelled as ‘hauntingly beautiful’. As it so happens, ‘Broken Open’ by Adam Lambert, is another song which fits into this category.
At first listen, one could be forgiven for thinking that ‘Broken Open’ is simply a mock rendition of ‘Mad World’ by Gary Jules; another of my favourite songs. Both songs share an eerily similar melodic pattern, one which is a pleasure to listen to. On a purely basic auditory level, Lambert’s ‘Broken Open’ is quite different to ‘Mad World’, offering more of an upbeat pop synth loop with spacey techno buzzes and pings added for good measure. Even so, the song has a beautiful sound made even better with Lambert’s sultry voice. Surprisingly, Adam co-wrote ‘Broken Open’ as well.
I must say, Adam Lambert has created a stellar debut album. He has managed to cater for almost every genre, proving his versatility as an artist. Even more impressive, is the amount of talent that was wired behind the scenes into helping him create his first album, from the likes of MUSE, Pink, Lady Gaga, Ryan Tedder (OneRepublic) and Sam Sparro, among others; all adding their own personal touches to each of Lambert’s songs. ‘For Your Entertainment’ is a brilliant pop album and is definitely worth listening to.
As always, whenever I post about Vivaciously Varietal Vibes on Music Monday’s, simply click on the name of the song to be taken to a web page that displays the songs lyrics.
Music Monday: ‘Hearing Damage’
Posted by Hans Haupt in Entertainment, Internet, Music Monday on 14 December 2009
Hey Milieunairs,
It is Music Monday and thus time for another Vivaciously Varietal Vibe! ![]()
-
Flavour: Pop/Rock
-
Artist: Thom Yorke
-
Album: Twilight Saga: New Moon OST
-
Song: Hearing Damage
Rationale: For quite some time I have spoken about songs which I have labelled as ‘hauntingly beautiful’. A majority of songs by MUSE, such as ‘Sing for Absolution’, fall into this category. ‘Hearing Damage’ by Thom Yorke, in my opinion, is another song which can be described as such.
I am not sure if it is Yorke’s surreal voice or the constant electronic and hypnotic pop synth buzz, but this is one of those rare songs that I can listen to over and over again without fail. The song is simply addictive. As it stands, I think that Hearing Damage is by far one of the most listened to songs in my entire music collection. I am actually listening to the song, and have it on a loop, as I write this post.
‘Hearing damage’ was written and recorded by Radiohead front man Thom Yorke, who specifically wrote and recorded the song for the New Moon soundtrack. Fans of the Twilight Saga will recognise ‘Hearing Damage’ from the scene in New Moon when Victoria pursues Charlie before being chased by Jacob. As a matter of fact the New Moon soundtrack, in its entirety, is actually very good and, oddly enough, was even given the ‘thumbs up’ by my father – a good thing because it means that the old folks will enjoy listening to the music no matter how loud you play the album. Consequently, regardless of whether you like the Twilight Saga or not, listen to the album for New Moon because you may be pleasantly surprised by the experience.
As always, whenever I post about Vivaciously Varietal Vibes on Music Monday’s, simply click on the name of the song to be taken to a web page that displays the songs lyrics.
Until the next time “Milieunairs”!
It’s Britney, Bitch!
Posted by Hans Haupt in Entertainment, Holidays, Life, Music Monday on 28 November 2009
Even before we arrived in Australia, I knew that Britney Spears would be bringing her ‘The Circus’ tour to the land down under. However, I never thought I would actually get a chance to attend the concert.
For starters, Britney’s last show in Melbourne was on the 13th November and we were only set to arrive in Melbourne on the 16th. Furthermore, tickets to the event were not exactly cheap, ranging from stadium seating at $250 (R1700) per person to the insanely priced ‘Love Seats’ for $1500 (for two tickets –> R10 000 ). Consequently, chances of me attending Miss Spears’ performance were pretty thin.
Or so I thought.
Through a fortunate turn of events, Britney had actually extended her tour due to popular demand, adding three extra shows to her repertoire. One of those shows, as luck would have it, was in Melbourne.
I would be lying if I said that I was not excited at the possibility of watching the princess of pop perform in the flesh. After all, like the Queen (Madonna), it is not as if Britney would be making her way to South Africa. So it was pretty much a ‘This Is It’ kind of scenario.
Amazingly, my parents ascertained that this would be a fantastic experience and wholeheartedly agreed to buy tickets to the show. Not only that, but they even allowed me to opt for the ‘stool’ seating, which is directly behind the ‘Love Seats’ and, as it turned out, was literally a meter and a half away from the stage.
Without a doubt, ‘The Circus presenting Britney Spears’ was the best concert I have ever been to. I am unable to truly relay how awesome the experience was. The circus elements to the show, alone, were worth the price of admission; from acrobats, to martial artists, clowns, mimes, weapon artists, magicians… you name it and it was there (animals excluded). In addition to the circus element, I have never before been privy to a live performance with as much pyrotechnics and stage theatrics as this. The ‘wow’ factor was simply phenomenal. I do think that the experience was made just that much better courtesy of our seats which, as I have mentioned before, allowed us to be almost within two arm lengths of the pop princess.
Contrary to the controversy surrounding Britney’s performance in the land down under, I can honestly admit that I would watch it again. So what if she lip-synchs? Anyone who has heard of Britney Spears knows that she is infamous for lip-synching (along with many other famous artists). So this was really of no surprise. In my opinion, if you want to hear an artist sing, buy the album. If you want to watch them perform, go to a concert. Whether they sing ‘live’ or not is irrelevant. With that said, it is worth noting that Britney did sing at least one song live, the ballad ‘everytime’. To all the naysayers who think Britney Spears cannot sing, let me tell you, this chick has a good voice. As a matter of fact, she actually sounds better live than through her recordings. So it is a shame that she does not perform ‘live’ more often.
Considering how close I was able to get, I was quite surprised to realise how small Britney Spears actually is. She is tiny. Then again, I am 6’4”, so a lot of people are smaller than I am. After two kids, she does look very good. While I’m on the topic of her body, it is worth noting that she is rather fit. She has good muscle tone; most definitely what could be described as a dancers body. So she is not petit and does appear to have some extra junk in her trunk. I think the biggest surprise to me was how small her boobs were. For those who know we, I’m a boob man. Britney has a good handful, but not what one would expect after all of the boob job debates. Have a look for yourself, in the album below.
I am truly so thankful that I could have this opportunity and would like to send a huge ‘I love you’ and ‘thank you’ to my loving parents who made it all possible.
Until the next time “Milieunairs”!



