Do you appreciate your senses?

As a music aficionado, I love the luxury of listening to aurgasms (the first 2 definitions, please). I try to be cautious with my headphones and earbuds, not to listen at too high a volume which could damage my hearing in the long run. But as I mentioned before, many people are not as careful. Are you one of them?

Like many of our senses (sight, taste, feel) we take our hearing for granted. I only appreciate my voice (although I am a mediocre singer) when I had a horrid throat infection to the point that I completely lost my voice. And yes, my youngest uncle was right. Once you stopped talking, it is very hard to start again, even if you are a chatterbox.

Do we think about other people who are deprived of their senses, either from birth or due to disease or accidents? Have you ever thought how it would be like if one day you can no longer hear the voice of your loved ones, no longer see the beauty of this world, no longer taste chocolate, no longer feel the silk against your skin? If your answer is yes or no, pray to God that you will never experience it.

It is easy to feel sorry for people who are unable to enjoy one or more of their senses due to a disability. However, many of them refuses to be the object of pity and made a life for themselves that is fulfilling and rewarding. And yes, even deaf people can enjoy music. Evidence are below.

Grenade by Bruno Mars



The New Sh*it by Marilyn Manson



Jar of Hearts by Christina Perri

Happy New Year!

Okay, okay, I am a few days over due. But what can I say? I'm an inveterate (invertebrate?) procrastinator. I'd tell you that it's my resolution to change, but then I would be lying.

Anyhoo, enjoy some sweet music from the delightful Zooey Deschanel and her dashing friend, Joseph Gordon-Levitt.

The tree song

This song is mega cute!!! Pity it didn't progress to the finals for the Anugerah Juara Lagu this year.

Dance!

I have always been a fan of Pet Shop Boys since the 80s (yes, I am that old. Shut up.). They have a gift of combining novel musical elements together into something dance-y and yet suffused with a darkness in their message. PSB is also big on stunning visuals and have no compunctions to slip into crazy outfits with every new album they produced.

I don't know how I could have missed out this video; it was released last year. But then again, I kept (and still do) losing the battle for the remote control.
But this! The engaging storyline, mellifluous shots and flow ... a master craftsman product of a video.

Enjoy.

Emotification

I love the honesty in her vocal expression. What music rocks your world? Do share.

Pity wishes aren't horses ...

... because, Freddie, I want someone to sing this to me in the morning, hehehe.



I love the 80's pop soul sensibilities. Very the Hall and Oates, no?

Violins and moonbeams

One of the sweetest and most romantic songs ever.

I give you Hujan's "Dikala Bulan Bermain Biola"



I hope you enjoy it.

Ear candy but sweet on the lips too ...

If you perceive music more than just a single sensory indulgence, when you listen to this, you may have the sensation of sinking your teeth into a sinfully luxurious Boston creme pie on a lazy Sunday afternoon.



And if that was Boston Creme, the one below is more along the lines of dark chocolate mousse.

Traipsing down memory lane ...

I was eleven the first time I listened to this song. Although I was a callow child with little understanding of romantic notions, but the sincere emotions illuminated by a sweet melody and illustrated by prosaic lyrics really struck me. The song evoked a visceral reaction in me and I remember going to school, humming this song and trying to recapture the sensation I experience even from the opening bar of the song.



Since then, I have been a fan of Robert Palmer and am working towards collecting his discography. He was a talented musician and singer who delved in genres from pop to progressive rock to swing and jazz. But I love him best when he croons love sweet nothings.

Now, I all I need to do is find a guy who will dedicate this song to me. *grin*

Rhythm mechanical

I have a tendency of loading video clips without watching; when immersing self into auditory bliss, visual input is not needed. When I listen to this video, I just get this strangest floating sensation ... pleasant and yet eerie.

And then I actually watched the video.

Video below cut for disturbing theme. You have been warned.

Walking down memory lane ...

Facebook interaction sparks the weirdest things. A friend shared a hari raya song that made me crave to be home and baking cookies and the ensuing conversation unearthed the following video. Ah, recollecting songs of one's youth ... this was before Elton John went Disney-fied and my liking turned to loathing.



It is amazing to note that once upon a time, models in video clips actually look like real people.

Swing it!

For those who enjoy steampunk novels, here is the genre that would be the perfect soundtrack to your reading pleasure. Caravan Palace is a marvelous example of the melange that is electro swing. Big band sensibilities with electronica edginess, this genre is whimsical and magical with an underlying darkness like hidden teeth.





*is swinging away to the beat*

Relationship manifesto

(Un)healthy relationships ... if you are in one or are looking for one, this is the song for you.



I give you the delightful Emily Haines and DJ Tiesto. Lyrics can be found here.

Ah, l'amour ...

I have a fondness for Malay songs that were produced in the 70's and 80's; I think the melody and lyrics resonate with the closeted romantic in me.



Noor Kumalasari was a model, actress and singer in her heydays. She was well-known for her stylish attire that complements her tall and willowy figure. As an actress, she specialised in tearjerker films like Tiada Esok Bagimu, Abang, Matinya Seorang Patriot and  Esok Untuk Siapa. I loved her in the movie Rahsia, where she played a grieving mother haunted by the ghost of her child. It was one of the scariest movies I've ever seen.

She had produced around three albums and one greatest hits album. Noor didn't restrict herself to a single genre, singing romantic and even comedy songs. Her voice is distinctive and is capable of decent range; but to me, her greatest strength as a singer is the sincerity of emotions that she can convey. It breathes life into her songs; plucking your heartstrings with emotions or making you laugh out loud. 

It was reported that she is now content to stay out of the limelight to devote herself to God and her family. Bless her for having shared her talents with us.

Don't take it lying down, girl!

When I saw this picture:

I thought of this song:



which was featured in the Quentin Tarantino movie, Death Proof. I love April March's music style; I was surprised that she's actually a contemporary artist and not one from the swinging 60's.

For those ladies who want to warn their man who has a wandering eye (and other body parts) tendency, send him this song.

*grin*

Lyrics under cut.

Gotta love a nerd

Anyone who ever watched footie at a stadium (live or as a telecast) and/or is a hardcore rock music fan would know this iconic STOMP-STOMP-CLAP. I even had Generation Z students who used this song as template for a performance to explain mitosis.

This masterpiece is the brain child of one Dr Brian May, lead guitarist of the quintessential arena rock band, Queen. Dr May is more than a wild-haired electric guitar virtuoso, he is also an astrophysicist who wrote a book on the cosmology (aptly named Bang! A History of the Universe) based on his work on interstellar dust.

Yup, wild-haired brainy dude.(Thanks Wikimedia Commons!)

Initially, the sound effect was not to be included in the final cut of the song; but he was intrigued by the feedback from the audience during a concert that he thought deeply of how he could incorporate the audience participation in their live act - "a means of uniting the audience".

"I was thinking, 'What can you give an audience that they could do while they're standing there? They can stamp and they can clap and they can sing some kind of chant,' " he says. "To me, it was a uniting thing. It was an expression of strength." - excerpted from NPR interview.


He drew from his physics and mathematics background to create a distinctive sound of thousands of feet stomping and clapping in unison, building sound using old boards and prime numbers. Bet when you were swotting through mathematics, calculus, algebra and geometry, you never thought that you can use it to create a song that nets you millions in royalties, no?

Dr Brian May is the reason why girls love wild haired musicians: the guitar will loosen the knickers, but that brain? Totally meltworthy.

Amazing Diamond

I have always had a thing for Shara Worden's (aka My Brightest Diamond) voice. She is a trained opera singer with an amazing range and depth as well as texture, though I do not know if she's a coloratura soprano. I first fell in love with Gone Away, one of the best songs to slash your wrist by when pining for a former lover. But what she executed in this video is both cute and awesome and I think you will agree with me that it takes amazing lungs to sing this flawlessly while stamping as hard as she did.



*chin-hands in admiration*

My inner fangirl, let me show you

The first time I saw Inception, I was blown away. The plot, the characters, the banter and dialogue, the special effects, everything. It has been ages since I'd seen a movie that completely swept me off my feet. My brain actually shut down to let me simply enjoy the movie without contemplation of logic or rational thinking of any sort.

My cousin, who went to see it with me, agreed it was a mindfuck of the highest degree. To this day, the soundtrack of the movie could still refresh my enjoyment of the film. Ah, to be in the concert and wallow in this live ... what an experience it would be!

Ear candy in surgery

Medicine is srs biznez, yo. But does it mean you can't kick back and have fun? Of course not.

Enjoy the Laryngologists spoofing Breaking Up is Hard to Do, nurse anaesthetist style.



While we are in the medical vein, we must not forget Weird Al Yankovich's parody of Madge's eponymous hit, Like A Virgin.

Except with surgeons. Pray to God you don't get one of these guys should you need to go under the knife.

Anthem: Lisbeth Salander

(Do not worry: this post is NOT a book review.)

I had finally finished reading The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson. Not knowing Swedish means I have to read the translated version by Reg Keeland. Some of the odd expressions littered in the book made me suspect that he made an effort to make sure that the original expression in Swedish is maintained.

It was a difficult first 60 or so pages for me; like a chemical reaction, the frenzy for devouring the book had a high activation energy threshold. But once I met Lisbeth Salander,  it was like a napalm firestorm; I was ignited to consume to book in a single sitting. This was not possible as real life has a way of interfering with obsessions and a wage has to be earned.

Salander is completely out of my realm of experience. Damaged, brilliant, cunning, naive, dispassionate and yet vulnerable, Salander is a contradiction within a puzzle wrapped in an enigma (or however the expression is). She is quite the archetypal anti-hero(ine)  who lives in the fringes of society; her wary forays into mainstream society often underscoring her prejudices of the  bourgeoisie.

To my mind, this song by Fiona Apple perfectly illustrates Salander. Lyrics can be found here.



The conclusion of the book was very satisfying and yet I was ambivalent about getting the next book in the series. Salander (and Blomqvist) is not a character that I find comfortable to read; (I usually stick to happily ever afters) but somehow, as I left my rental book store, I found The Girl Who Played with Fire in my hands.