captain stupid sword and bob the dinosaur

Back from the iTunes Live ARIA Awards, Concert Sessions. The lovely father was nominated for Best Children's Album - but naturally The Wiggles won. Again. For the third time in a row. I severely dislike them. But that doesn't matter! I don't want to insult anything that anyone out there really quite enjoys, but honestly I think that The Wiggles time has come and it's time for Justine Clarke to make her way to the top. Which she has, she's the most lovely person ever and an amazing actor and singer, but I'm not advertising am I? I'm blogging! (finally...)
So yes, the iTunes Live ARIA Awards, Concert Sessions. Let's just call it the iTunes thing, yeah? There was about ten minutes of award time and an hour of live music, whelp!!
Boy & Bear opened and ooh, they were so so good! I'd never really listened to them before but in between trying to ignore the pain from my feet and trying to figure whether they were an Indie-Folk or Indie-Rock band (we decided on the folk,) I decided that not only do I really quite like them but that they sound like the Fleet Foxes - a plus, 'cause the Fleet Foxes are so in my top ten bands - and that the lead singer is quite the looker. I got a little smile from him after the set, and now I think about it I should've gone and introduced myself. Dayum.
They played for about half an hour and each song was better than the last. The four part harmonies were so completely amazing, you could see the concentration on their faces. I probably would've been transported into some crazy world where I would have the sudden urge to start writing songs again, but I was outside and amongst people and I didn't want to start mouthing words - I was already getting funny looks for my boots and bedsocks.
The awards were next and then Washington. She was so energetic and had the coolest shoes ever. Her voice is so strong, but I thought I could hear a bit of straining towards the end...she was gorgeous though. She had this cute pixie cut and wicked piano riffs and her bass players bass was the most awesome colour. Salmony orangey reddy pinky colour, gorgeous and I am so jealous I want it. He looked like my friend Jake. Kinda creeped me out, but yeah.
I miss live music so much, but I'm so hoping I'll get my live music fix soon enough. Keep reading lovelies, I haven't completely given up on this blog yet !



Rock It - Little Red





Scattered Diamonds - Hungry Kids of Hungary


Enjoyyyyyyyyyyy x

alligator

I have a new favourite band. I've been listening to them for a while now, but I never really let myself indulge in them because I didn't want to get sick of them. I've realised that when I like a song or a band and I put them on repeat and listen to them over and over for about a week or two until I absolutely can't bear the thought of them. I dislike this!
So, the band in question is The National. The Cincinnati band - which, btw, makes them even that more likeable because I absolutely adore saying 'Cincinnati' in a really bad American accent - has this glorious sound. It's kind of like a mixture between Band of Horses and The Who. 
Honestly, I don't know why it reminds me of those two bands but it just does. So, like all my favourite bands, its comprised of two sets of brothers plus one. Eep, brotherly love! Aaron and Bryce Dessner (guitar, bass and piano for Aaron and guitar for Bryce) and Scott and Bryan Devendorff (Scott bass and guitar and Bryan drums) and the plus one, my personal favourite, Mark Berninger. His voice! Melt my heart, why don't you?
But, anyway, as I was saying. I don't want to indulge myself in them because I don't want to get sick of them. I love them too much too let my ears become bored of their sound. Kinda like a hot bath, let yourself in slowly and then you can indulge. Bad analogy, I know but ssh, who cares.
So yeah, thats my latest news. I just think that they're something special and unique, like most bands, but more. They can put me too sleep but they can wake me up, they can make me calm or get me psyched. However, I don't think they make the cut for Barney Stinson's "Get Pysched Mix!". Pity.

P.S "I was afraid I'd eat your brains, because I'm evil" = greatest most creepiest lyrics ever.

hear it here, part 11

I have to play this for my trumpet exam. The part that immediately comes in, yeah, the fortissimo high A? Yep, that.

hear it here, part 11

i want to meet the walrus, part 2

Her Majesty. I actually have no idea what this song could be about. Just a little fun song. But I'm truly curious. So, 'Mean Mr Mustard' and 'Polythene Pam' originally had this inbetween them but when Paul heard it he didn't like it and asked for it to be edited out. When you listen to 'Her Majesty', the first chord is very strong and full and is, infact, the last chord of 'Mean Mr Mustard', and it ends so abruptly because it's real last note is tacked onto the beginning of 'Polythene Pam'.
I didn't completely comprehend all of this, when I first read it, but then I did some tinkering of my own and made a playlist on iTunes with these three songs and put 'Her Majesty' in the middle and it all worked out quite nicely.
Again, 'Her Majesty' has played some more trickery on us. Originally, 'The End' was to be the final track on the last album ever recorded by The Beatles, but the engineer who cut out 'Her Majesty' obviously didn't want it to be completely destroyed so he recycled it to the end of the tape, making 'Her Majesty' the sly last track on the Abbey Road album.
Paul has also admitted that he had a bit of a crush on Queen Elizabeth as a boy, and when he met her on the 26th of October, 1965, to receive their MBEs he was asked what her thought of her. He replied: "She's lovely. She was very friendly. She was just like a mum to us."
Oh, Pauly, U QT!

shwingers and shvingers

I think that, and I'm sure I've said this many a time before, Australia definately comes bottom when it comes to band tours. King of Leon is going all over America with the Black Keys. SP00N is going around England with The Doors and gaaaaah unfair!

But, in my despair I looked up the lineup for 2011 Big Day Out and I'm pretty sure it's going to be sah-weeet. From what I can see and from the update and leaks from various people it looks like the Gorillaz will be there, eep, as well as The National and M.I.A and Kings of Leon???????? Squeeeeee!

If this is true I am so getting a ticket no matter what. That is all for now, I felt bad for not blogging. Apologies. I don't even have any good youtube videos for you cause of friggin' school work. Tear. But I'm just gonna budge you guys again and link you to my tumblr? Yey!

P.S If you haven't noticed, Kings of Leon are my latest craze. I know they've been around for ages but only recently have I started to listen to them and I really quite like it. I can't explain it, something about their definite beat of music and the singers voice just gives me nice chilllllls down my spine. Whats more, they're all incredible babes.

i want to meet the walrus, part 1

A couple of months ago my dad, knowing my utter obsession with The Beatles, bought me their book A Hard Day's Write. It is absolutely amazing. I don't know what I orginially though the Beatles had in mind when they wrote their songs, but it sure wasn't what was actually going through their mind.
And so, because I think that a little knowledge about the meaning behind songs is always good, we're going to play a game.

No, not really I lied. Every week until I run out of Beatles songs I'm going to write what I thought a particular song was about. Underneath, the real story behind it. If you guys have any suggestions or songs you want to know or thoughts you had on why that song was written, tell me!
First song: Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band. 

I always figured it was just some little song about Pauls secret childhood friend or something like that, Sgt. Pepper. Then, with four minds plus some working together they got the Lonely Hearts Club Band. Yeah?
Kind of...Paul McCartney created Sgt. Pepper and his band to give the Beatles more freedom with their music. Thats a legit reason I think.
In November of 1966, Paul had had to wear a fake moustache so as to travel in cognito while travelling in Nairobi. On the flight back, Sgt Pepper was conceived. This led Paul to believe that the Beatles would be so much more free is they opted for this group disguise. However, by the first song on the album the trickery was found. Their disguse didn't last through the reprise either, although it
succeeded in giving the impression to many people that Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band was a 'concept album,'".  George Martin says that the songs have absolutely no connection at all, but that doesn't matter to most...doest it?

Next Song: Her Majesty

hear it here, part 10

New favourite shower song, hells to the yeah

hear it here, part 9

So...I've been a bit not good on the weekly music fave have I?

Well, back into action, men! Let's get crackin'!

I'll blog more tomorrow, cross your fingers I don't go to school pleassseeee

a peanut was walking down the street when he was jumped and A-SALTED

Really quite overdue, but Band of Horses! I admit, they weren't as amazing as Grizzly Bear but were still pretty darn good. The bass player played bass like a bit of a douche bag and seemed to base his appearance around Bono. I don't suggest this for future performaces, Rob Hampton, you look weird.
I didn't really know what to expect. I was quite ignorant of any knowlege about them, only things I assumed or had shamelessly Googled.
But they did put on a good show and did have a good vibe. Plus, what's more, I got a t-shirt! Yay for cheap merch!
I'm ashamed to say that I can't really remember much because it was a little while ago...seven days, to be exact. Basically, the point is they did put on a spectacular performace. They were fun to see, I would definately see them again and Joe Arnone I want to marry you.
BUT GUESS WHAT!!!!
My brother turned eighteen not three days ago (yes, yes, happy birthday best wishes blah blah) and he's having a small get together and he asked me to play bass for him. So now, with him knowing I wasn't all that knowledgeable on the 12 bar blues, he gave me a good lesson and I am fully prepared for any blues thrown my way.
I also realised I gave the wrong link to my tumblr...oops, so for the proper link click here and make yourself comfy.
I leave you with two things.
Numero 1: Should I buy a ticket to the Gorillaz ?!?!???!???!!!!????!?!??!?!?!?
Numero 2: Get That Week State of Mind, Grizzly bear vs Jay-Z.
Enjoy, lovelies.

can you play slow life please

They drank beer and cordial instead of water, they conversed with single people in the audience, they blew the minds of Sydney-siders for the fourth time that year and will continue to do so for as long as they are here. Their music was amazing, their performance was outstanding and their whole being just wondrous.
I didn't know what to expect, were they gonna be as good as they were last time and are they gonna make me feel all funny inside?
They did it all plus some.
After a trek and a half in the rain to get there and prays to the working gods that Allya's friend was working there (which, by the way, she was and so was her other friend but just wait!) we got to the Enmore, showed our tickets and walked into the theatre.
There was one of the two support bands playing, I can't remember what they were called - sorry, no harm meant - and we stood around and waited for Allya's bossmanfriend to turn up. Which he did. And he took us to the barrier. Separating the people who didn't get tickets that would get them to the front. And looked at a guy. And we got stamped. Just like that. Needless to say, we got in and had front and a half row standing positions. BOO-YAH!
So yeah...standing there, waiting for the second band to finish. They were actually quote good, similar to the Dirty Projectors but not as good - again, sorry, no harm meant - but still good. I can't remember their name though, I think I'm having an early onset of memory loss.
Anyway, standing and swaying and then lights go dim and everyone screams and yells and woowoos and Grizzly bear comes on and oh my gosh I think that I may faint because in that three seconds that it takes for Christopher Bear to walk across the stage I have fallen even more and more in musician love with him! He had the cutest new haircut but thats not important. (It is kind of but shh, thats for me talk to myself about...)
Grizzly Bear's music has a way of numbing the mind and making one forget anything bad that has happened. I've been told that I need to say why. Why is their music amazing? Why are they all so awesome? Why is Chris Bear's new haircut so cute? So I will simpify and expand.
Their vocal chords are amahzing and their harmonies just make me wish I could do that. Each of them is doing their own thing on stage but they are still so in tune with eachother and seem to know whats gonna happen.
At one point, they had a backstage person headbanging to "Two Weeks".
People say that musicians who just stand still while performing are boring and lack the animosity needed to perform well but in this case I must say I disagree. Daniel Rossen, who sings and plays guitar/piano, moved only a little and I couldn't seem to stop looking at him. He looked so calm and collected, occasionally smiling and sharing a joke with Chris Bear (!!!!!!).
They all work so hard and to their full extent. I'm yet to see a band who makes me feel the way they do. They make me happy.
I'm scared I'm going to repeat myself, after all it is early, so maybe I'll quit now.
In a nutshell, Grizzly Bear kicked ass.

im cyber sorry

My gawsh what a horrid blogger I have been! I can't even begin apologise enough. I don't have an excuse except that I've been busy and had nothing to write about, but pfft that's not good enough.
I still don't have anything exciting that has come to my head and I haven't had some amazing realisation of what music does to you but I can say that next week beginning Sunday is going to be so flippin' hectic!In a good way, of course.
I'm seeing Grizzly Bear (eeeeeeeeeeepppppppp!!!!!!) on Sunday, then montueswed it's my school musical and I'm playing bass so thats two nights and one day and would be three nights but Thursday I'm seeing Band of Horses (double eeeeeeeeppppppp!!!!!!).
Apology enough? I need to grovel some more? Okay fine. How do I plead?



So, anyways, whats da gosss guuurrrlllfrrraaannn? Allya, my ever lovely music supplier has introdued me to the wonderful world that is mashups. Wu Tang Clan vs The Beatles, amahz, Gorillaz vs Marvin Gaye and SHEEWW MUUSHHH MOOORREE.
But my last post, that wasn't completely shitty, was about all my music from my old computer ?!? So yeah, it is the biggest blast from my past in a while. All this crazy stuff like Alicia Keyes and Jack Johnson and things I didn't even know I listened to like the Sugababes, makes me laugh a bit. Oh, and Jamelia's Superstar. Best. Song. Ever. I have a birthday card from a while ago and my friend drew a picture of me singing along to it. Looovee it.
Anyway, this is just a catch up.
I'll be better with posting I promise. If you wan't proper good normal less sporadtic posting go to my tumblr, yeah? Coolios.
Ohh, I've missed this. It's nice to be back.

hear it here, part 8

I've been a bit of a crappy blogger lately. And I am so sorry! Blogger block, it sucks, you don't want it.

I'll get back on track soon. Love xx

welcome home

I've got my old music back. Thirteen years of collected garbage on my laptop. This is like coming home after being at a boarding school for two years or eating a milk arrowroot biscuit dipped in milk and you suck all the milk out from the miniscule holes in the biscuit. This is like seeing your family laughing at something you said or did. This is like home.
Alicia Keyes, Bowling for Soup - I welcome you with open arms into my computer hardrive. Rufus Wainwright, pull up a chair by my cosy battery! You too, ZZ Top. I miss you guys.
I forgot all about so many bands. The Fugees, George, The Grates. Wowowowowowwww. Flippin' love The Fugees, I forgot how lovely they make me feel!
Have any of you heard their version of Killing Me Softly? Cause now you can. It's okay, thank me later :D

hear it here, part 7

war cry

I need help. Badly. I got a tumblr. and now I'm hooked and I don't know whether I should switch. I don't know who reads this and I don't know if they like it or not but I've already got about five followers on tumblr. and I only got it today. So, help is in order.
Keep blogger or move this whole thing to tumblr.? Never ever would I give up this blog, that would be like giving up a child. So please, for my sake, help me decide.
Please please pretty pretty pretty please comment or message me or something me and tell me what. to. do!!

But for my sake...heres the link :D and a song.






Love me xx

hear it here, part 6

compare and contrast

bobbidy dah macdaddy

This guy is amazing. I want to meet him and shake his hand and kiss him on the cheek and tell him that he is the Superman of Music and that, if he wants, we should drink tea and improvise together. Don't know if you remember, but a couple of posts ago I said I was terrible at improvising? Don't go getting your hopes up, still just as terrible, but watching Bobby McFerrin and listening to him makes me want to practise and practise and improvise and improvise.


Isn't this insane? Brilliant, genius. They don't know whats hit 'em. 
But then, he goes on to talk about expectations. And the pentatonic scale. This really shows how the brain works in expecting things to happen a certain way. I don't really know how to describe it. Watch!

Don't we just love the pentatonic scale? Neuro science, here we come...err

rawr

Reow! I've come to confess something, but thought I'd butter you up a bit with this amusing video. Bit of a role reversal, dontcha think? What with the King of the Jungle being behind the tigerrrrrrrr.

Anyway, my confession is this: I like Lady GaGa.

Not all of it. Only two songs. Alejandro and Telephone. Don't ask me why. I just do. I've already been shunned enough as it is, don't judge me please! Just those songs are so much fun. Oh me, oh my.

ffffffiiiiiifffffttttteeeeennnn !

I'm fifteen and have been for 10 days! I can see M15+ movies legally now! Not that I've been seeing them illegally or anything, abide by the law I do...sometimes...
Anyway, yes, I'm fifteen :D exciting? Not really except for the fact that I'm seeing Grizzly Bear and Band of Horses, anyone else extremely jealous?
I've been trying to think what I'm going to do and all I could think of was expand my music even more and try and not fail maths. I think they're good goals.
I've been trying to get myself into the more reggae scene now, and I've got some good Toots and the Maytals and some Bob Marley. The other day I was having a bass lesson and we decided to turn up Ray Charles' What a Wonderful World and turn it reggae, more difficult than I though. I had a bit of trouble keeping on beats 1 and 3 and always ended up on 2 and 4.
But with some practice, I'll improve.
Just want to say, sorry for being such a shoddy blogger. Exams and exams and assignments and blah, this is what high school does to you. *Sigh*.
But anyway, on a sadder note, my Insane Peacemaking Omniscient Delightful music maker is full. I've crammed so much music on it I don't have space enough for more Cake and Kirsty MacColl and The Generationals. Chin up, lads, things will get better!

"i was born in the back of a beat up old car in morocco" "what kind of car?" "it was a red volvo"

I recently got asked on my formspring.me account "yo coco who is your biggest musical influence and why?" and I honestly didn't know. I thought about it and then realised I knew exactly who it is.
Beethoven, The Beatles, my family and Cake are my biggest musical influences.
Beethoven because he was just amazing. He was almost completely deaf by the time he wrote his ninth symphony and he worked unbelievably hard without question. I probably look up to him because my work ethic isn't the greatest and I am constantly distracted and I know that if I became deaf, I would be insanely upset at knowing that I would never be able to hear things again.
Not only that, but I really, really like his stuff. Cliché'd, maybe but I really do. Almost as much as Bach but not really. Again, I repeat myself: his ninth symphony is amazing yet he was deaf. I think by the time he wrote it, he didn't even need his ears anymore he could just feel the music.
But The Beatles, oh you guys! They blow my mind. Each one of their songs kind of has it's own personality and has a certain depth to it. Can I even begin to explain? No, but I'll try.
With each chord and each strum and each note, it seems I begin to think about the work that was put into these songs. All their first hits, "I Want To Hold Your Hand" etc. don't talk about sex or swearing but something so much more simpler, just love. Thom from Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist says it all. Sure, there are probably some hidden inuendos in there but lets just look past them.
All four of them have some kind of manic power where their music hits you and makes you think "Oh. Oh wow. Oh wow, oh wow."
A couple of weeks ago my dad, knowing my love for this band, gave me a book called "A Hard Days Write" which has the story behind all of the songs. You know the rumor that Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds is about LSD? Wrong. Shut your gob, you know its wrong. John Lennon's son Julian came home with a drawing one day and said it was his friend Lucy and that she was in the sky with diamonds and bada bing you've got the hit that caused so much drama.
Also, I recently had to write a report on Michael Moore's 2002 Bowling For Columbine and, curious as the cat, I decided to look into the meaning of Happiness is a Warm Gun, seeing as Moore uses it in the most ironic way possible. Does it have anything to do with guns? No, Lennon just liked the saying.
The way they use their voices and orchestrate all their songs bewilders me. I want to be able to harmonise like them!
They have got to be one of the most ifluential groups, I think. I mean, who sings about little piggies? And who sings about a guy called Maxwell bludgering people? Not that many, unless their seriously disturbed or just kinda awesomely cool and no one cares if they do. Like The Beatles.
My third musical influence has got to be my household. Corny, I know, but I honestly don't care. I grew up listening to music and playing music and singing music. They know how to get my going, and at any given moment we can break into songs and harmony or put S Club 7 on and dance wildly around the kitchen.
Finally! Cake! No, not the food ya goof, the band. I love them. Enough said. They make me want to sing and write my own songs even more than SP00N. John McCrea has a voice that makes me melt. That is all.
This post took me ages to write, hence the lack of posting. I couldn't really get what I wanted to say right and all of it seemed so much the same and dull, but I'm hoping it didn't turn out that way.
Muso's for the win!!

hear it here, part 5

I might post a video of me playing this on uke, what do you think?

hear it here, part 4

"look at this amazing cover art!"

i can sing synesthesia

I've been thinking about this for a while and I even tried it out yesterday, but I don't understand. Synesthesia is the concept of hearing different musical tones in colours instead of what notes they are. Like, G minor would be turquoise or C major could be red. But then I thought, what if I just imagine a chord and see what colour it comes as? 

Now, I searched and searched for something to describe this to me in more detail and I came across an article written by a synesthesiac who says that he "believed that everybody 'saw' life this way, and it wa rather surprising to find out that those of us who make these kinds of addociations are actally in a very small minority." 

I can relate to this completely. I see my school toilets as days of the week and if I don't go into Thursday I feel all funny for the rest of the day, and I imagine the number 2 as being a stuck up old ponce who thinks he's better than anyone just because most numbers can be divided by it. J and K and L are all really close friends and have inside jokes, and M and N are fighting over who gets O. 

Now, this is just a self-diagnosis so don't go telling everyone that I see Friday as an evil green bunny and that the number 6 isn't too self-assured. 

But some really famous musicians were synesthesiacs, like Olivier Messian, a famous French composer. He associated the music with different colours, and he believed that musical terms like "tonal" and "modal" were incredibly misleading and that music either had the colour or it didn't. He also stated that the music by composers such as Mozart, Chopin and Wagner was all extremely coloured. 

I can't think of music as colours, but everything else has some kind of name. Imagine hearing an A flat and going "oh, that was blue!" or seeing an F chord and stroking your beard and saying "hmm, seems a bit like a browny-red to me..."

It all baffles me, but I love it. I've been reading things about synesthiacs all day and I can't get enough. Apparently John Lennon and Jimi Hendrix were synesthiacs aswell, so if it turns I am one then I'll two of my favourite musicians saw what I see.

frankie, my dear, you do give a damn!

Well, I finally got around to writing this post. It's been brewing in my mind for waay too long and it's been churning up all my thought and I just can't get it out of my mind so I thought what they hey and finally got around to writing it. 

Lets get right to it shall we? No dilly-dallying for us! You've all heard of frankie magazine, haven't you? Cause if you haven't, well boy oh boy are you missing out. frankie has a way of turning confusing political/world/peace/homophobic topics into really interesting articles in which I can actually grasp the concept of and I understand and I get and agree with!
But not only this, but they have cute little titbits at the beginning to ease us into the brilliance that frankie is!
In their most recent issue, they mentioned a band (or should I say orchestra??) that I'm sure I've mentioned before, and if I haven't then I'm shocked at myself!
WELLINGTON INTERNATIONAL UKULELE ORCHESTRA! UKULELES! ORCHESTRAS! INTERNATIONAL! WELLINGTON! UKULELES! UKULELES! Have I mentioned the ukes?
WIUO does covers of songs - good and bad, your choice - and makes them better. 'Sif you can't believe me, they are an orchestra of ukuleles! And you all know how I feel about those petite guitars, absolutely love 'em. Also, Bret McKenzie from Flight of the Conchords is in it? Just got cooler? Couldn't be possible, but it happened.
I'm going to let you rest now. Catch up on all the wonder that frankie is and somehow manage to remind yourself to go buy frankie and WIOU new cd right now if you aren't already getting your coat and hat and being on your way. As per usual, I leave you happy and content and listening to New Zealands Christmas Tree. Xx!

hear it here, part 3

its sunday pumpkin

I am so ridiculously bored you don't even understand. I've been browsing the internet for the past half hour trying to find a good concert or something that I would want to go to but its either all sold out or at an over eighteen venue. Damn you, 1995!
So, instead of doing my English like a good school girl I'm watching Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist and still surfing the web and making cookies. Procrastination, baby!
So, whats up in the muso world? Any goss? Any music? Any anything. I can't even get excited for Grizzly Bear, I'm that bored.
Thom and Dev found a drummer! Yey! Okay, um, lets just say:
Boredome equals brainless searching for music which equals in rediscovering lost artists like Alison Krauss? Um, yeah I though so too. Let's go find Where's Fluffy, shall we?

hear it here, part 2

for jettson

Pop-Tarts are amazing. This because of what they taste like and what they look like and because of the amount of different flavours there are, theres 28! To begin with there's there Frosted Flavour. Some of these include: Blueberry, Chocolate Chip, Hot Fudge Sunday, S'Mores, Cinnamon Roll and lots more. Then theres the Unfrosted and the Pop-Tarts Splits. These one are very yummy also. These are Chocolate Vanilla, Strawberry Blueberry and Maple Brown Sugar.
Some other flavours are Chocolate Graham Cracker, Vanilla, French Toast and Frosted Wild Watermelon.
My favourite is Blueberry because it is fruity and sweet at the same time, whatta mix! It is very rare to find Pop-Tarts in Australia because they simply don't have them here! But some shops are sly dogs and get them anyway which is so good because I simply love them.
I must again, thank my lovely proxy-sister Allya for telling me that the corner shop on her street sells them and for buying me my very first Pop-Tart (Frosted Brown Sugar Cinnamon) and being there when I tried it and fell in love with it.
Some people think that Pop-Tarts are very unhealthy and they are right but I don't care because I love them. They make me feel all nice inside and I feel badass eating them in a country where they aren't produced.
Because of aforementioned reasons, I conclude that Pop-Tarts are amazing for the reasons mentioned above and that everyone should try one! Especially Jettson J, but hopefully if I manage to gather the energy he will try one today. Yay!

somebody loves you!

Who's got two thumbs and just bought tickets to Grizzly Bear on the 25th of July? This guy does! And pretty soon we'll be adding Florence and the Machine to that and then Band of Horses. I could not be any more excited.

So, so, so, geed I'm almost h-ed. Now, the only reason these are all happening are because yours truly is turning the big one five in 13 days. Exciting, isn't it?

Thats all really. That I'm going to be lucky enough to experience the wonder that Grizzly Bear is yet again. And then some. Woo! While I go and wallow in my humble abode and dream of July you can watch Beirut's 'Elephant Gun'.

hear it here, part 1

New favourite song. Meat and Potatoes by Belle & Sebastien. I was flicking through my iPod and I came to this song. Well, all I can say is my love for B & S has been rekindled.

crater face

It has come to my realisation that there is actually good rap out there. I was all annoying and "rap is all so similar and no rap artist can think for themselves" blah blah blah, but I'm starting to think I was wrong. Well, not completely. There is still all the people out there singing about broken hearts and screwing people on the bathroom floor and getting it on with girls in bars and stuff like that, but some rappers are just plain cool and who cares what they rap about!

All my friends are really surprised when I say that I've found my new favourite song and I play it to them and it's a rap song. There is just some people out there like Jason Derulo and Ke$ha and all those kind of people whose songs seem to be so flippin' familiar. People who actually listen to that music are probably all freaking out about now and saying "What? No it's all completely different!" 

But I was listening to Blakroc, and yes they sing about coochies but I actually like their stuff. I think it's because it's mixed in with the Black Keys that it just seems to have so much more, um, oomph to it. Other people rapping are all about electronic sounds and synthesizers and things like that. Blakroc has guitar bits in and drums and bass and well, I like it. 

The Gorillaz, well, don't have much to say about them. They are just pretty much plain cool. They're music is electronic in a way, but not always. They rap and sing about things that matter. Example?

Well me, I like plastics, 

and Digital Foils could wrap up the sun

and protect the girls from the spiritual poisons

You spill at night

Like phony clothes, but I really like my...

Some kind of nature, some kind of soul 

So is there some kind of hidden message in there saying he wants to screw the girl on a bar top or is it about covering the sun and protecting girls and liking phony clothes? The latter, I think. But then again, this is just me. These are my though and what I think about rap. Lets leave it at that, shall we? 

hapay biffday!

Happy Belated Birthday Tchaikovsky! 

I love you very much and hope you enjoy being six feet under. Love Coco xoxo

forty three dollars

Just now right today all this morning and this afternoon was the Bondi Sizzle Community Garage Sale!
I honestly can only say that it was one fine day filled with the calming strum of four ukuleles and some homemade jazz, along with knitting in the sun and just general happiness all round.
But, not only that, but I got my camera working! Which means soo many more photos on here! It'll be colourful! I'm very, very excited.

This was only the beginning of our stuff, you should've seen the stacks and stacks of clothes and bits and bobs and plain old junk we had!

Sadly, this Twiggy wasn't for sale. But isn't she pretty?

 

Books?

yess, it is an alarm clock, I'll give you about two minutes to freak out over its coolness. 

Okay, so this is where the really cool stuff happens. This guy was selling boxes and boxes of old records and just some mad vintage stuff. I could've spent hours there but I had to scurry on home to our own sale, but I managed to snap a few before I left. All these brought me back to my post a couple of weeks ago about how no one ever buys vinyl any more, but seriously if I had had anymore than four bucks in my pocket I would've gone beserk. 

Damn right he's a soul man!

I took a dodgy photo of the absolute ultimate disco record, but it was just so dodgy I couldn't even look at it. Apologies? But this guy, pretty sure his name was Tim, was just really plain cool. He had on this tartan suit and some braces and a cute little bowler hat and was just chilling in his front yard with this cool group of people. Couldn't want any more in life, personally. 

But, more to the fact, new obsession: The Dodos. They're originally a two-man band but now have a vibraphone player and are, no surprise here, an American indie rock band. What I find quite interest is that the drummer, Logan Kroeber, doesn't use a bass drum but raps out rhythms on the rims of drums and also uses a tambourine that he's taped to his shoe. 

Their vibe player only plays during live performances, but from what I've discovered and uncovered they sound like a pretty mean band. I use the word mean in its positive way, like "he plays a mean guitar!", geddit? But just take a minute to listen to Horny Hippies by them. Completely astounded me. 

SIMA

The other day my music teached took me and about thirteen other kids on an excursion. I didn't really know what was going to happen, so I just let it all roll. We ended up at the Seymour Centre in the city, and made our way into the famous Sound Lounge. I still had no idea what was going to happen.
Miss had told us that we were gonna be treated to a performance by some of the best jazz musicians in Sydney (she wasn't wrong) and that we would then have a improvisation course. She was half off.
We did see some of Sydney's, nay, Australia's best jazz artists but we didn't get the improvisation couse. Mind you, I'm not really complaining although I should start working on improvising, I'm really not that great. I just don't have the guts...
Anyway! So, the fifteen of us got to see the Sandy Evans Trio and the Phil Slater Quartet, how exciting! They were really brilliant, the skills that they have. Sandy Evans is absolutely amazing. The things she can do on that saxophone just blow my mind. Same goes for all the musicians there. We had question/answer time after their performances, and someone asked if they had had any classical teachings before they moved to jazz, and surprisingly only Sandy Evans had.
Most of them had no classical background, but Sandy had started off with classical flute and then moved to saxaphone in highschool.
Oh to be a cool jazz musician!
The Phil Slater quartet was also just as incredible and, in a way, fascinating. They were so tight and together and never swayed away from the beat. It wasn't a solid beat, and I think that was the main thing for their quartet, that a group of people can stay so together but still be improvising over a tripppyyy bass line. Phil had the most unbelievable chops ever ever ever, and that comes from a fellow trumpeter. My dad's friend was the bass player, which I reckon is pretty cool. But then again, the Jazz Community is much more tight-knit than those of indie or hip-hop, if you get my drift.
It was pretty special, going to see them. Front row seats aswell. I only wish I had the skill and the stamina and the patience to become who they are now, that would really be something now, wouldn't it?

i've got a biiiiggg lessbiiaaan crush on you!

The hall is black, the only light shining down on the stage. The lady there picks up a sea-foam green guitar and plucks a couple of notes. Someone nearby wolf-whistles. 
"You trying to say guitar players are hotter than piano players?" she jokes, her voice soft. The room laughs. "They are," she adds. More laughter. Her voice is soft and timid, she looks scared and shy. She starts to sing. Boy oh boy, that voice. Like nothing you've ever heard before. Strong, beautiful, amazing. Who is this lady? Why, none other than the gorgeous Regina Spektor!

Yep, thats right. Last night was THE night. Josi and I got there and, seeing as she's a bit of a newbie at all this, she started snapping pictures of the great Opera House. We mingled and talked and went outside but that doesn't matter. Because the only thing that matters right now is her concert. The support act, Brooklyn band Jupiter One, was quite good. I'm not completely sure of my feelings towards them, but it's definately not negative.
Anyway, so they played. Weird mixture if you ask me, cello, drums (or bongos, the drummer wanted to be "subtle" for a change), and a guitar. But the guitarist slash lead singer slash violinst slash piano player did play alot alot of instruments. They were also the band for Regina Spektor!
It started out with just the main guy doing some pretty wacky stuff on the violin, and then he picked up gee-tar and did some wicked cool pluckin',

 ...and then the cellist came in added to the funky sound going on. Pretty sure his name is David Cho. 

...and then came in the drummer! Seemed like he already had a couple of fans out there in the audience. We could hear people cheering as he walked on. He was pretty mad. They rocked out for a bit, nice.

Then they left. They went offstage and it was intermission. We were so much closer to Regina Spektor! It was kinda cute, the lead singer kept thanking her and saying how nice it was that she let them open for her. You could tell her actually was thankful! Anyway, so we left, got some maltesers and drank some coke from a glass bottle and made a pretty statue:

...and we made a video of a malteser falling down a hill. But then we heard the *dongdongdong* informing us that the concert was about to commnce, so we collected up our bits n bobs and headed in! Boy oh boy, sitting down in the concert hall for Regina Spektor was amazing. It was completely packed.  Unlike for Jupiter One. We all waited and you could hear people around you talking animatedly about her songs and which ones were their favourite. Josi and I didn't talk, we waited. We were so flippin' excited! Then the lights went dim and the members of Jupiter One walked out followed by the most cutest woman ever: Regina Spektor.
She sat down, looked at her band members and started to play The Calculation which was shortly followed by Eet.  She was amazing. Her voice was so strong and so confident! Various cries of "WE LOVE YOUR REGINA!" and "YOU ROCK!" made her smile her adorable smile but she was undeterred. She. Is. So. Cute!
She just played and played and played, and then when she spoke, well, slap me round the face and call me donkey but her voice was so soft! I thought it would be loud and boisterous but it was small and quiet. She is a very deceiving person. Because of her talking voice I thought she'd be not funny or anything, but she was really entertaining aswell as funny and smart. People calling out comments all over the place, she had answers for the majority of them.

Okay, soooo, anyone else agree how gorgeous she is? I don't think I can come up with any really intellectual words right now. I'm still in awe of how gut-wrenchingly spectacular her performance was. She had the whole entire crowd under her little finger. Not only that, but everyone was so polite. We didn't utter a word when she was getting ready and only a couple of times didn't someone scream out or 'wooo' when she was preparing her lovely self.

"Hold on, one more time with feeling,"

I've droned on long enough. In a nutshell, Regina Spektor is supermegafoxyawesomehot and her show was that times about the google xponential. Be jealous! Oh, whatta babe. 

Oh! Almost forgot. You will never ever ever ever ever ever guess who is playing at the Enmore Theatre on the 25th of July. Don't go Googling that, its cheating! Guess!

"You've got to dig it to dig it, you dig?" -

I dig it, Thelonious, I dig it. Some songs just make me think. I put them on and I'm off, wondering about why we have eyelashes or if dogs are really some kind of alien animal and they're going to take over the world someday. But other songs, boy oh boy, I don't even know how to explain it. They put me in this kind of trance and it's like a montage of my life. Kind of like, oh this reminds of the time this happened! And then this happened! Oh yes, and then I meet this person. I wonder if we'll be friends soon? Anyway, and then I wanted to learn this instrument and blahdiblah.
In a way, music is all rather stereotypical itself, isn't it? There's the group that goes out all the time, and they seem to listen to rap and electronica and stuff like that, then theres the group that doesn't go out that much and they are kinda more of the indie/rock persuasion. Then there are the just pretty much cool kids, who everyone secretly wants to be but won't admit it, and they listen to the jazz and the funk and the soul and the classical. Some people are part of their own boat, and occaisonaly visit others but they stick to their own stuff. Me? I think I'm part of Group 2. I'm spreading out though.
I probably sound like the biggest stereotyper (is that a word?) out there, but from where I'm standing thats what it seems like. This is the view from my third eye...

Do the Shuffle Struggle

Ahoy there, mateys! Me and my loverly friend Isabella are playing a game. Not necessarily a game, but something like that. We have both decided to make our way through our music makers/iPods/portable music players, what have you. It's on shuffle, and if you start again then you lose or you just have to, well, start again!
The rules are as follows:
1. You can only skip a song if it's at least halfway/three quarters through.
2. You can't change the song to your liking! Unless you wanna lose the game!
3. You have to listen to every song. You can't "accidentally" leave it on while playing/reading/making/watching something else. Like I did. In English today. But that was an accident.
Thats it! Oh, no, one more thing. There is no winner. Why would there be? It's not a race to see who can get through their music first, no, no, no! It's simply a little fun to see what you used to listen to, what you have on your iPi that you didn't know you had, to rediscover old tunes that you forgot about. It's purely for the nostalgia, on my part. So far, I've listened to the craziest of mixes. Something along the lines of: Randy Newman, Grace Jones, Spoon, The Mama's and The Papa's, The Cinematic Orchestra and some calming Chopin. Weird, huh? Maybe they can tell what music you like and don't like...hmm...thats a thinker.
Wanna join in on the Shuffle Struggle? Be my guest, and trust me when I say it's a struggle. I'm up to song number 123 (!!) out of 1310. Whoopee!

scandanavian ukulele shmootz

Oh, ukulele players. Where would be without you? I don't really have much to say. Promise, though, that this is the last video I'll post for a while. You just kinda gotta see it. Oh, and again, thanks Allya. Merlin, woman, you needa stop finding so much cool stuff! See, this is what happens when one has to go to school and her proxy sister is home sick and can just find sweet things on youtube. Flip on a stick with a brick, mother bees!

Okay, well enjoy. Thanks Allya. Again. Sweet Merlin, woman, you da bomb. Also, because they keep getting cut off and I'm so over it I'll just link it up. You'll love Brett Domino after this. Forever more. Babe!
One more thing:

REGINA SPEKTOR NEXT WEEK !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!