The Knife-Like a Pen
No need for me to go on about how much I like the Knife so sit back and enjoy the videos. (Although, I would like to know why/how Sweden and Norway are creating such good music?)
The Knife-Pass It On
Matt beat me to this one!
Catholic High School-The Brat, 1983?
The Brat is an early 1980s Eastside Punk band from right here in Lincoln Heights. Theresa Covarrubias is singing about her alma matter, Sacred Heart High School.
I wish they’d have more concerts at the Lincoln Park Boathouse…
A very good interview of The Brat by longtime Eastside punker Jimmy Alvarado can be found here:
Razorcake
Check out Razorcake Magazine while you’re at it!
Sebastien Tellier – La Ritournelle
A new favorite song accompanied by an excellent video.
Appropriate for today, this version even has a bunny in it. Sadly, I think it gets eaten.
Rasputin-Boney M (another version here)
Despite being super popular in Europe during the 70s and 80s, German disco group Boney M were never all that famous here in the US. I first heard about them many, many years ago from a young Iranian co-worker who would talk about them endlessly and was shocked that they were never well known in the U.S. She had asked me to find her some of their music but despite my music collecting skills, I had no luck in locating any of their albums. Finally, I found some of their music, in of all places, on a Vietnamese mixtape I bought in a small Chinatown music store. Soon afterwards, I discovered one of their albums in my dad’s extensive record collection. Like my co-worker, I was hooked! Boney M’s music was catchy, infectious and even delivered social messages with their disco beats. Most of their songs are about folk heroes, rebels and historical events.
Their videos and performances have been an extra treat. The lead singer’s Michael Jackson like moves, along with his profuse perspiration lead one to believe certain substances might have been involved in fueling his on stage energy. See for yourself:
Daddy Cool-Boney M
Children of Paradise is another favorite and this is what it was like to go to school in the 80s, sorry if you missed out.
Music is Math-Boards of Canada
There was a very brief time, a few years ago, when I felt overwhelmed by sadness and despair. Rather than try and make myself feel ‘better’ I decided to go with the flow and wallow in it. Surprisingly, wallowing in despair is much more enjoyable than faking happiness or denying such overwhelming feelings. In any case, I feel it is part of my tradition and my cultural right as a woman of Mexican descent to experience emotions in a very obvious way. Those telenovelas characters weren’t created from scratch, right? The perfect accompaniment to this bit of self indulgent dramatics was a weekend listening to Boards of Canada’s album Geogaddi while reading Chris Ware’s visually beautiful but tragic story of loneliness and alienation, Jimmy Corrigan, The Smartest Kid on Earth. Something about the combination of this music and story was just the right salve for a sadness like mine.
CSS in Coronet, London “Music is My Hot Sex” 12/15/07
Little over a year ago, myself and the dancing Christmas tree girl in this video were co-workers in a crappy warehouse doing a tedious and ever increasingly frustrating job. Now she gets to dance around a stage in silly costumes to sold out audiences around Europe and the US. I am so happy for her! Seriously, way to go!
It’s 2008, time to follow your dreams!
Bule Bule-Los Rockin’ Devils
While this may not be my favorite song by this band, that distinction goes to “Yuyu Mata Yuy Jen” (an excerpt can be heard here), this Spanish version of “Wooly Booly” certainly has it’s own unique charms. Plus, the dancing is quite entertaining!
(Hehe, it reminds me of a night out at Transistor.)
Thanks to El Chavo and his readers for the links!
C’est Comme Ca-Les Rita Mitsouko
I first came across this video on the Tam Tam Books myspace page. I was intrigued, was this video recent? The music sounded a bit retro but I couldn’t tell. In any case, I’m a sucker for thespian chimps. Equally compelling is the awkward style of dancing by the singer, Catherine Ringer, a herky jerky, stiffed backed series of rhythmic lurches. I did a bit more investigating and found out the video was from 1987. Imagine that? A full 20 years later and the Emo kids are still rocking Catherine Ringer’s look.
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Maps–You don’t know her name
Lately, I’ve been into this post psychedelic electro music. Does the genre have a name?