Posts Tagged Music

New Years Resolutions for 2010

2010 - Happy New Year Can you believe that it is 2010? We are already a decade into the ‘new’ millennium.

To mark this special year, which also happens to be divisible by 5 and you all know how much I love numbers, I have committed myself to 10 resolutions for this new year.

I actually had a grand plan of revealing each resolution on each new day of the first 10 days of the new year via Twitter. Unfortunately, this did not work out as planned. Nevertheless, this is the long awaited and eventual blog post to sum everything up. Without further ado, I present to you, my new years resolutions for 2010:

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It’s Britney, Bitch!

Britney Spears - Circus Tour Memorabilia 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.

Britney Spears - Circus Tour Tickets

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.

Britney Spears - Circus Tour Performance

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.

Britney Spears - Circus Tour (Performing Everytime, Live)

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”!

 

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Music Monday: ‘Feeling Good’

Hey Milieunairs,

Muse - Origin Of Symmetry It is Music Monday and thus time for another Vivaciously Varietal Vibe!

Rationale: MUSE are truly an amazing band. They have such a unique sound, one which I have dubbed as ‘hauntingly beautiful’. They are, without a doubt, one of my favourite artists. A title which I do not bestow likely.

Although they have released a new album entitled ‘The Resistance’, I felt it would be good to dedicate a post to a song which has been ‘covered’ more times than one can count.

The song, ‘I am Feeling Good’, was originally written by Anthony Newley and Leslie Bricusse for the 1965 musical The Roar of the Greasepaint—the Smell of the Crowd. The MUSE rendition of ‘Feeling Good’ is one of the most unusual versions of the song that I am currently aware of, but one that is equally as beautiful as the rest.

With that said, I wish that you all ‘Feel Good’, no matter the day or the circumstance. Life is too short for regrets and grudges. So, ‘cheers’ to a new dawn, a new day, and one day soon, a new life!

MUSE: ‘Feeling Good’


Muse Lyrics

 

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”!

 

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Separated at Birth?! – Rihanna and Adam Lambert

Courtesy of Twitter, I was notified that the recent American Idol winner runner-up, Adam Lambert, was releasing his new album. My first response: “If he is not the winner, then who the heck is”?

A quick Google search informed me that the legitimate winner of the last season of American Idol was actually Kris Allen. Who would have thought, considering that Adam “media-whore-and-loving-it” Lambert is the one stealing all of the spotlight!

Truth be told, the last time I actually watched any variant of the show was when local Anke Pietrangeli beat out Pussy Poseletso Sejosingoe for the top spot, back in 2003 on the South African version of the show. Since then, I have pretty much lost all interest in anything Idols related.

However, what I do care about is when I have to begin pulling out facial recognition software to correctly identify artists. Case in point: Rihanna VS Adam Lambert.

Seperated at Birth? - Rihanna and Adam Lambert

Molly good golly do these two look alike!

Even though we all know that Rihanna had some unwilling and unconventional ‘remodeling done’, one would be hard pressed to deny the similarities between everyone’s favourite Jamaican princess and American’s latest flamboyant Queen. That said, would it not be delicious if it was uncovered that one of these two ‘stars’ was, in fact, an illegitimate love child?

I can already picture the headline on the next cover of Heat - “Exclusive: Lambert is Rihanna’s brother, but he was too ‘White’ to keep”. Alternatively, and of course the most likely scenario, is that someone at Lambert’s record label got a little too excited with Photoshop – 21st century technologies, “making you look like everybody else”!

Rihanna - Rated RAs if the two stars looking alike was not enough, both are releasing their new albums on the same day, Monday the 23rd of November 2009.

To ensure that you do not accidentally buy the wrong album, which you would be forgiven for given the ‘twin’ factor, Lambert’s debut album is entitled For Your Entertainment, which is also blue and sparkly, whereas Rihanna’s latest album is called Rated R, which is all dark and ‘emo’.

Since both albums are hitting the streets on the same day, which are you going to “buy” first?

 

 

Until the next time “Milieunairs”!

 

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Music Monday: ‘Running Up That Hill’

Hey Milieunairs,

It is Music Monday and thus time for another Vivaciously Varietal Vibe!

Rationale: I am a great fan of MUSE, especially songs such as Ruled By Secrecy and Sing For Absolution, which I have dubbed as ‘hauntingly beautiful’. Thus, when I heard this song during the screening of The Human Contract, I knew that it would become one of my favourite songs.

I absolutely adore the rhythmic beat of this song. I find it strangely hypnotic, akin to listening to your lovers heartbeat when your ear is pressed against their chest. As a result, I felt I needed to share it with you all. Perhaps this song may take you to another place, like it did with me.

‘Running Up That Hill’ by Placebo

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”!

 

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Pa-pa-pa-pap en Vleis…

International readers may be looking at this post’s title and wondering:

“What the hell is ‘pap en vleis’”?

Every South African, and it is not a hyperbole when I write that every single one of us, knows exactly what ‘pap en vleis’ is.

‘Pap en vleis’ is a truly South African dish, one that is deeply imbedded in our history.

According to South Africa Tours and Travel (2009), throughout South African history, from the time of the native  ‘Khoi’ and ‘San’ people, through to the ‘Great Trek’ and ‘Anglo/Boer War’, ‘pap en vleis’ was a staple and customary dish. This was primarily in part to the fact that settlers at the time were constantly on the move, along with their nomadic and native counterparts.

Subsequently, very few provisions, all none perishables, were taken when moving from one location to the next. One of these primary imperishable’s was ‘pap’, also known as ‘maize meal’. The ‘vleis’ (meat) on the other hand, was often sourced directly from cattle or native game. Innovatively, gathered meat, a perishable, was made imperishable by being cured, dried and cut into slices to be enjoyed at a later time. Today, this is known as ‘Biltong’; the life blood of a true South African!

‘Pap en vleis’ is often served with gravy and ‘boerewors’, a South African made sausage, during a ‘braai’, the South African variant for the term barbeque (‘Pap en Vleis’ picture courtesy of Giuseppe de Filippis).

In mock-honour of our South African heritage, the primarily Afrikaans radio station, Jacaranda 94.2, created a parody of Lady Gaga’s “Pokerface” tentatively known as Tannie Gogga’s “Pap en Vleis”. I was thinking about saving this little gem for the next Music Monday post, but decided to share it with everyone now. Especially after writing up that whole history lesson above.

So, without further ado, I present to you: Tannie Gogga’s “Pap en Vleis”.

Parody of Lady Gaga’s ‘Poker Face’ -> Tannie Gogga with ‘Pap en Vleis’!

For those who can read or understand Afrikaans, I have also included the lyrics to the song in this post.  Simply scroll down, past my Milieu sign off, and hit the link labelled “Read the rest of this entry“.

I hope you have all enjoyed this small taste of South African humour… Well, those of you who can understand it, that is!

Until the next time “Milieunairs”!

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Music Monday: ‘Reach Out’

Hey Milieunairs,

It is Music Monday and thus time for another Vivaciously Varietal Vibe!

Rationale: There is no doubt that I am a fan of the popular genre of music more commonly known as pop. I can openly admit that I thoroughly enjoy music from, for example, the likes of Madonna  and Britney Spears. Subsequently, I have enjoyed almost all of Hilary Duff’s work.

Reach Out, in my opinion, is a great song. Probably more so for me because I cannot actually ‘reach out’ properly with my right arm. Believe me, the irony of choosing this song, in light of my current situation, is not lost. In fact, it actually reminds me that I have something to work towards. After all, my answer to Miss Duff’s question is yes. Yes, I would very much like to show you ways to workout those vocal cords ‘reach out and touch you’.

What some people may not know is that the song was produced by OneRepublic’s Ryan Tedder and is built around a sample of Depeche Mode’s 1989 song “Personal Jesus”. Furthermore, Reach Out was Hilary’s third number one on the US ‘Hot Dance Club Play’ billboard and was specifically produced for the Best of Hilary Duff album, which is also the final record in Hilary’s contract with Hollywood Records.

 [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JStfziF4duQ&fmt=18]

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”!

 

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Music Monday: ‘Run’

Hey Milieunairs,

It is Music Monday and thus time for another Vivaciously Varietal Vibe!

Rationale: Recently the artist known as Leona Lewis released a song known as ‘Run’. What many people may not know, however, is that her rendition of the song is merely a cover of Snow Patrol’s original ‘Run’.

I have been a fan of Snow Patrol ever since the song ‘Run’ aired in the season one finale of ‘One Tree Hill’. Yes, Snow Patrol has been around for quite some time. Many newer fans however, only discovered this gifted group when their first true commercial success, ‘Chasing Cars’, was used in the season one finale of ABC’s Grey’s Anatomy. I personally prefer Snow Patrol’s version of the song ‘Run’, but I have included videos of both renditions below, as well as a poll, so you can make your own decision.

‘Run’ is a beautiful song which reminds me of loved ones lost. It is a reminder that those who are no longer with us are never truly gone and that they will continue to live within our hearts and minds forevermore. Furthermore, it serves to remind us that those who have passed, no mater how hard it has been, would want us to carry on, to be happy and to never let our inner spark for life and love diminish.

 

    Snow Patrol – Run (Unofficial Music video with lyrics)
      
    Leonis Lewis – Run (Official music video) [Cover of 'Run' by Snow Patrol]

 

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”!

 

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Music Monday: ‘Earth Song’ – A tribute to the ‘King of Pop’, Michael Jackson!

Hey Milieunairs, 

Michael Jackson - 29 August 1958 to 25 June 2009It is Music Monday and thus time for another Vivaciously Varietal Vibe!

Rationale: ”On June 25, 2009, Michael Jackson collapsed at his rented mansion at 100 North Carolwood Drive in the Holmby Hills area of Los Angeles. Pending confirmation from toxicology reports, he was allegedly administered Demerol shortly before he stopped breathing. Attempts at resuscitating him by his personal physician were unsuccessful. Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics received a 911 call at 12:22 p.m. (PDT), and arrived three minutes and seventeen seconds later at Jackson’s location. He was reportedly not breathing and CPR was performed. Resuscitation efforts continued both en route to the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, and for an hour further after arriving at approximately 1:13 p.m. (20:13 UTC). He was noted already to have been in cardiac arrest by the paramedics who attended his house. Jackson was pronounced dead at approximately 2:25 p.m. local time (21:25 UTC) (Michael Jackson via Wikipedia, 2009).

Regardless of Michael Jackson’s tainted past, the man was an enigmatic legend. He single-handedly moulded and commercialised the genre of music we know as ‘pop’. It is also through his influence that the music video is what it is today and one of the primary reasons why we have MTV and VH1. From the young to the old, every person knew of Michael Jackson and has, at least once, at one point in their life, jived to one of his carefully mastered and best selling beats. I know that I have, on many occasions, bobbed my head, shaken my ass, grabbed my crotch, uttered a primal “ouwoo” and raised a faux white-gloved-hand to the heavens. Consequently, his death is not only a blow to the aging music industry, but also a major loss to millions of adoring fans worldwide, not to mention his “children”, family and friends. As a result, it is with a heavy heart that I bid farewell to one of, if not the, greatest musician of our times. Rest in peace MJ!

For my salute to Michael Jackson, I chose the Earth Song. This is one of my all time favourite Michael Jackson songs and has unmistakably influenced the person: I am, continue to be and will undoubtedly become.

Michael Jackson:

August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009

Michael Jackson – Earth Song

 

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”!

 

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Music Monday: ‘Mercy’

Hey Milieunairs,

It is Music Monday and thus time for another Vivaciously Varietal Vibe!

Rationale: I am a big fan of MUSE. Consequently, I have been scouring the net for a band which has a similar sound and repertoire. Although I have yet to find such a band, I was lucky enough to discover the musings of a band known as Ours.

“When you first hear Ours, you will likely get strong flashes of Jeff Buckley. Listening to Jimmy Gnecco’s voice [lead singer of Ours] and inflections it is hard not to, the similarities are as clear as day. In addition to Buckley, I heard touches of The Cure and Radiohead all blended together in this art rock mic. Despite the comparisons, Gnecco is still able to carve out his own direction and differentiate himself. The song writing is a thing of beauty, with flowing guitars, smooth rhythms, and an expansive soundstage, Ours moves with an ebb and flow that is all of its own” (Chris Beaumont, BlogCritics, 07/04/08).
 
I chose the song Mercy, because I believe that everyone will, at some point, either be merciful towards another or be shown mercy through an act of humility. In some ways mercy may have a direct correlation with forgiveness. I believe in forgiveness. To forgive is to pave the way to absolution. Even so, I am of the opinion that not all things forgiven need to be forgotten. Consequently, one must always try to learn from past experiences and attempt to move on. As the adage goes ‘what does not kill you, can only make you stronger’.

 

‘Mercy’ by Ours off of the album ‘Mercy… Dancing For The Death Of An Imaginary Enemy’

 

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”!

 

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