Often (well, as often as I remember to update this site) when I’m trying to think of a subject for the very nearly regular music video triple posting I’ll think of one thing which makes me think of something else leading to something else, something else, something else, something barely related, and so on.
Today, I thought to myself: “I wonder what subject for the music triple I can come up with on this fine-looking Sunday.”
Seven years ago (holy heck! Seven? Holy. Heck.) I wrote about Girls Aloud in what turned out to be quite a popular post. Since then much has happened (well, it would as that was seven years ago (seven!)) in the lives of Nadine, Cheryl, Kimberley, Sarah, and Nicola, although you’d be hard pressed to remember any of it other than the Cheryl stuff. I certainly can’t. What I do know, though, is that Girls Aloud are reforming for one of those album releases and mini tours that a lot of bands do when they’re a bit down on their luck after splitting to go their own way. No blame is attached to that statement. It’s what bands do. If I were a girl in Girls Aloud (probably Nicola because she’s pale and strange and I can respect that) it’s what I’d do.
I’m not going to write about Girls Aloud now though because I don’t tend to write much on the site these days. However, I do try to keep the site ticking over with content occasionally and one of the ways I do this is through the power of crappy, formulaic updates such as three music videos on a theme. Girls Aloud? Three music videos on a theme? What could possibly be coming next?
You’ll never guess.
Seven years! Seven!
Girls Aloud – Something New
Their latest track, with hints of that LMFAO/PSY that’s popular with the kids these days.
Girls Aloud – Long Hot Summer
I grudgingly admit that this is my favourite Girls Aloud track. Yes, that’s right: I have a favourite Girls Aloud track. I never thought that happen. Or that I’d tell anyone.
Girls Aloud – Something Kinda Ooooh
It’s the video with the sexy hopping dance in it. Okay, it’s got a hopping dance in it.
My sister-in-law has popped over from the states for a week and bit to visit (we’re returning the favour next month) and decided to bring an early anniversary present with her: candle holders in the form of a skeleton groom and bride. We are Tim Burton fans but that’s not the reason for the present; our wedding anniversary is actually Halloween. Anyway, that got me thinking about spooky things and that led to this theme for this weekend’s trio of music videos; the macabre, the scary, the decidedly witchy.
The Rattles – The Witch
I only discovered this track a couple of months ago; I can’t stop playing it. Wonderful production and pschedelic overtones.
The Cult – The Witch
I bought a CD of the Cult’s greatest hits many years ago from a second hand music store. I know it’s not a fascinating anecdote but I thought I’d share anyway.
Kate Bush – Waking The Witch
Fan-created video for a song not released (well, it was from the Ninth Wave, the second side of the Hounds of Love album (this is back when music had sides you crazy kids these days with your NB3s and your iTracks), so didn’t have much of a chance); it took me a while to get into the Ninth Wave but I love its concept and this is my second favourite track from it.
A weekend without a trio of music videos would be, well, pretty typical for most weekends. But occasionally I remember. And today I also remembered first starting to appreciate dance music. Appreciate may be too big a word. Tolerate is better. I’d always been one of those “agh, that’s not real music” sorts of people but things started to change when I got my first NoiseTracker program for the Amiga and realised that I too could produce music that was repetitive and not very good. That’s the sort of thing that makes you start to defend the tripe that appeared on TV in and charts. And copy it when possible. Copy, and improve. Only replace “improve” with that word that means the opposite of “improve”. I’m waffling when I could be putting up three music videos from that golden age of dance music: the early 1990s.
Nightcrawlers – Push The Feeling On
I had a bit of a thing for the redhead. I’m sure I wasn’t alone.
One of my favourite types of music and I haven’t updated the site with a random trio of videos celebrating the genre? Why, that’s the sort of thing that needs to be addressed right now!
Sylvester – You Make Me Feel Mighty Real
(with a few seconds of Patrick Hernandez at the start)
This line of text – the one you’re reading right now – would be the one explaining my reasoning for putting up three videos of Gerry Rafferty if I had any such reasoning. But I don’t. I might also typically say something about how poor I am at updating the site and I might make a promise to be better from now on but I can’t be bothered so I won’t.
I really don't get how Romania and Iceland got chosen. - Anika
It's irritating. The 50% jury vote in the semis is supposed to offset bloc voting but all it's done is weight the balance in favour of bland entries. Romania were last, which helps, and weird, which helps. Iceland wasn't thrilling, but it was okay; I can see how it got through. - Mark H
10 minutes until the first semi final. As usual, I've not checked out the performers in advance; it's far more fun to be surprised and horrified in equal measure as it's performed live on television and the web. - Mark H
Hostess for the evening apparently wearing a dress fashioned from aluminium foil. - Mark H
Austria first. Very 1980s look. Song is pretty unmemorable which is some achievement as it's still going. - Mark H
Birgit from Estonia now and a singer five months pregnant just to be different. Wearing a shower curtain just to be super different. Good to see it not being sung in English. White outfit and wind machine already looks to be the theme of tonight's performances. - Mark H
Hannah representing Slovenia now. I like the futuristic, quasi-military, quasi-avian uniform she's gone for. Quote from wife: "she's winning the shoe contest." Song's typically European disco. Not sure if I like it or not. - Mark H
Croatia. Men! Traditional dress! A song that translates as "misery!" Could be awesome. - Mark H
Not bad. Good harmonies. Pleasant sound, cracking-looking coats. - Mark H
A favourite to win now with Denmark's Emily de Forest. - Mark H
Hey! It's a white outfit and the wind machine's blowing! - Mark H
Oh, it started already? I've been catching the videos on the site, but I'm not dazzled by anyone this year. - Anika
First semi tonight; second on Thursday; final on Saturday. I've avoided all the videos this year as I don't think they tend to do the live performances much justice. - Mark H
Wait. Russia is considered part of Europe? - Anika
Dina Garipova for Russia now. As the commentators here just said: she has a certain Kardashianesque look to her but she can't be one as she has talent. - Mark H
Yes, Russia's in Europe. All the cool countries are. - Mark H
Pffft. Also, is it just me or does it seem like more of the contestants are singing in English nowadays? Most of the videos I watched the past few months we in English. - Anika
I'm not a fan of English songs in Eurovision either but it all started when the post-competition race to make money took over. - Mark H
WHOA. Is Zlata tiny or what that a giant dude? - Anika
Ukraine entrant there being delivered on stage by a giant; he's 8 ft tall. And she's wearing white. No obvious wind machine presence but the fog machine is active. - Mark H
She has a Celine Dion quality to her. I'm not a fan. - Anika
Her set is pretty though. I like the bird lights, there. I also like that's not in a dress. It's so rare to see women in pants during this event. - Anika
Yes, not a winner - or even close - but I quite liked it. - Mark H
About as different to the last song as is possible. - Mark H
Rapping astronauts. Now this is what Eurovision is about. - Mark H
I still think they need to work on their flow. Their music is good though. It always makes me want to dance. They need to dump the lady though or use her sparingly. - Anika
She looks like she's wearing an early prototype of Google Glass. - Anika
Loved it. Apparently it's very big in the Balkans too. - Mark H
Someone on Twitter mentioned that saying that Eastern Europe should have their own contest. I still can't believe Belgium ranked, though. Didn't people *see* that? - Anika
Astronauts Will See 'Star Trek Into Darkness' Before Anyone Else - »
"The three astronauts on board the International Space Station are getting a sneak peak of the latest Star Trek film just before people around the world get a chance to see it in theaters themselves." - Mark H
"Anyone else" and "people around the world" being phrases that mean "Americans". Just got back from watching it; very enjoyable and Benedict Cumberbatch is twice as excellent as you imagine he might be. - Mark H
"A new grammar and spelling test arrives in primary schools in England this week. It is the first time in a while that such emphasis has been put on grammar. Some of the questions will seem straightforward for many adults, such as where to place a comma or a colon in a sentence. But other aspects - identifying different types of adverbs or distinguishing between subordinating and co-ordinating connectives - might raise eyebrows." - Mark H
"So where do you draw the line between pedantry and slovenliness? Mount says the split infinitive is perfectly acceptable. "To boldly go, sounds better than to go boldly," he argues. The word "whom" sounds archaic so there's no need to worry about who and whom, he says. But anything that damages meaning and clarity should be avoided. For instance, the apostrophe should be defended at all costs, he says." - Mark H
"They may not be around any longer but their posters remain in perpetuity for us all to admire. TWA, once the glamour-pusses of the airline world, were flying here, there and everywhere and their ad campaigns weren’t afraid to show it either. Even the posters advertising their cargo routes rocked." - Mark H
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And via http://shop.philipstein.co.uk/Wine-Wands-How-it-works - "The elegant wand with encapsulated glass jewels uses natural frequencies to perfectly aerate wine. [...] Philip Stein® is the leader in mind-body wellness using natural frequency-based technologies in luxury products. The Wine Wand has been created to accelerate the aerating process of wine by replicating the natural frequencies of air and oxygen, and infusing them into the wine. [...] All Philip Stein® luxury products are permanently embedded with the natural frequency-based technologies and the Philip Stein® Wine Wand is a beautiful and indispensable part of any oenophile's collection." - Mark H
"You know who mucked up the economy, don’t you? It’s obvious from the laws proposed in the Queen’s Speech. It’s immigrants who don’t have their papers in order, that’s who. It was Somali refugees, popping out from their hostel to the local council to say: “Yesterday, on the way home from the Jobcentre, I whiled away the afternoon by speculating on the American loans market. So this week, as well as my £24 social security, I need a £20bn bailout as I seem to have lost the lot. And a £3m bonus, otherwise I’ll leave the country.”" - Mark H
"Then there’s the £90bn a year lost through tax avoidance schemes, most of which is down to Polish strawberry-pickers. It’s about £8m a strawberry they’re paid, and then they put it all in special accounts in the Cayman Islands and we don’t get a penny. No wonder Ukip is becoming so popular. And of all those cockle-pickers who brought the banking system to its knees – not one has voluntarily given back their knighthood." - Mark H
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