God Help The Girl - Perfection As A Hipster

Well, it has to be said.
In my mind this is without any doubt the best album I've heard this year.
I love it so much it hurts.
Here's a random great song from this all-ruling album:

God Help The Girl - Perfection As A Hipster (Neil Hannon and Catherine Ireton)

I'm going to listen to it again right now!
Bye,

Niek

Polaroid

I'm getting pretty sick of certain people thinking that certain stupid things, like ugly old polaroid pictures, are cool!
Why the hell should they be?
Yes, this is a very nervous day I'm having over here...

SNES

Just watched a 100 greatest SNES games video on Youtube...
Makes you feel pretty old...

Bronski Beat - The Age of Consent (1984)

Hey!
This time there's a little story to why I'm posting this...
Two days ago I dreamed that I forgot my call-card for my driving exam.
A little while later; What happened in reality is that I forgot my ID.
So I wasn't allowed to have my exam, lost 140 euro's and am still not allowed to drive.
On the way back my driving instructor turned on the radio and Bronski Beat came on with 'Smalltown boy'.
I never consciously heard that song before (I'm only 19, but I guess it was a hit), but I downloaded the album as soon as I got back home and loved it a lot.
So here's a link to their first album with 'Smalltown boy' on it:



Bronski Beat - The age of consent (mp3, zip)

01. "Why?" – 4:04
02. "It Ain't Necessarily So" – 4:43
03. "Screaming" – 4:15
04. "No More War" – 3:55
05. "Love and Money" – 5:07
06. "Smalltown Boy" – 5:02
07. "Heatwave" – 2:40
08. "Junk" – 4:17
09. "Need-a-Man Blues" – 4:20
10. "I Feel Love"/"Johnny Remember Me" – 5:59
BONUS
11. "Smalltown Boy" (Full 12" version) – 9:04
12. Why?" (Full 12" version) – 7:46

Looking for it on vinyl now.
Hope you like the album as much as I do! :)

Bye,
Niek

The Magnetic Fields - Plant White Roses (Susan Sings)

Hello!
I thought it became time that I should post something interesting again.
At the moment the Magnetic Fields fanbase has been so kind to provide everyone with the original b-sides which appeared on the single lots of years ago, but the real rarities are still a little harder to get.
One of these 'harder to find' things are the 'Susan Sings' versions of songs with Susan Anway singing that were later re-recorded with a lot of differences and Stephin Meritt on vocals.
Today I'm going to post the old and the new version of 'Plant White Roses', a kind of favorite among the Magnetic rarities I believe.
The re-recorded version appeared on the 'When I cry' single and sounds a little like Stephin singing over his Yamaha keyboard demo, but the Susan Sings version is a gospol influenced folk song with a choir.

The Magnetic Fields - Plant White Roses (Stephin Sings)

The Magnetic Fields - Plant White Roses (Susan Sings)

Hope you enjoy them!
Byebye,

Niek

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Ow... I believe it's already the 20th of January already!
Well, better late than never is certainly the case with end-of-2008 lists.
It might give a whole new look on end-lists in general, I mean, with the depression of the holiday over and the new year already up and started and what's more...
Yep! You can't be a real blog without writing a lot about you thoughts about the past year...
Well, let's think...
---
When I started 2008 I confinced myself that the proper thing to do was to make a album in which I would put so much work that if people still bullshitted it when it was done, that it just meant it wasn't that good or they didn't know their stuff...
Well, that album's done after months of mixing!
From August to November I've spent my life in a state of light-headedness, going from train to train between Persian language classes and mixing from 9 to 5...
I don't know what people are going to think, 'cause it ain't out yet...
But I'm afraid we're missing a single or just darn catchy songs.
What the hell, I don't care!
Why should I? I made it and it's being released! Try as you might! It's there and I made something!
So now the thing is to get back in public life...
I quit my Persian lessons and took on Art-history, I tour with a backing band now, I read Hemingway, I listen to Chris Isaak, I'm going back to directing movies and I'm taking my recording very easy.
Last time around, I spent months sending my Ep around to anyone, no more of that!
I let things take it's natural courses and that's more than enough.
---
My vingers are getting tired...
I start a new blog with a actual year-endlists or something and I'm not going to check all this on grammatical errors if that's ok with you.
Ha! Life might actually turn out cool!

Christmas

How's your christmas?
You can post anything.