Muse-ic Mondays: Issue 22

I have become obsessed with the song "Real Life" (Memory Tapes remix) by Tanlines ever since I came across it on MTV host Dan Levy's summer music blog for FASHION Magazine.

In the words of Mr. Levy himself:

"It’s a shiny, tropical, breezy tune that will integrate seamlessly into your summer soundtrack. So slap on the sunblock, roll up those denim cut-offs and let this little tune sing you into a summer siesta."

Now prepare to become addicted:



Don't say I didn't warn you.

NXNE Photos

Wavves

Japandroids

 PS I Love You

Yonge-Dundas Square Outdoor Mainstage

 Wavves

Watching Iggy & The Stooges

Muse-ic Mondays: Issue 21

Considering there were 650 bands in town for NXNE, I only got a tiny taste of the music festival, but it was so utterly delicious that I just had to blog about it. 

The National Post article "NXNE 2010: Five things we learned at Wavves" helps sum up my Friday night at Lee's Palace (which included sets by The Happy Hollows, Wavves, PS I Love You, and my personal favourite, Japandroids), but there were a few other things worth noting that I learned at Lee's and at NXNE in general:

• People at rock concerts (myself included) like to talk a lot about sweat — how sweaty they are, how sweaty the band is, how sweaty the shirtless guy that just squeezed past is...you get the point. It's a default conversation topic, just like the weather. Yet the forecast for these occasions almost always seems to be 'humid with a 100% chance of sweat.' Think about it: Are you really at a rock concert if you or someone near you isn't sweating? You decide.

•  Musicians at NXNE like to hang out, stick around and support other musicians. The Happy Hollows played from approximately 10 to 10:45 p.m., but they must have hung around the bar area for at least two hours after. Japandroids were also hanging out long before their midnight set. And if I am not mistaken, I also spotted some members of Still Life Still and Surfer Blood at Lee's for the Wavves and Japandroids sets. Coincidentally enough, I saw Brian from Japandroids in the crowd at Yonge-Dundas Square watching the free Surfer Blood concert the next day. 

• NXNE is awesome. Enough said. 

Here are some memorable tunes from the weekend:

1. "Young Hearts Spark Fire" - Japandroids



2. "Twin Peaks" - Surfer Blood



3. "No Hope Kids" - Wavves



(Mediocre) photos coming soon!

Young hearts spark fire

 

"Some hearts bleed...our hearts sweat."

Toronto's annual North by Northeast Music Festival and Conference (a.k.a. NXNE) officially kicked off yesterday. That means hundreds of local, national and international musicians are currently performing, roaming the streets, doing interviews or maybe even appearing on MTV.

Yesterday, I went to see Vancouver garage rock duo Japandroids perform on MTV Live.

For a band that expresses so much nostalgia for youthful abandon in their music, singer/guitarist Brian King and drummer David Prowse are incredibly energetic onstage. I don't know how old these guys are, but they look damn youthful to me. You've still got time, fellas. Give me hope.

Even with lyrics like "We used to dream/Now we worry about dying" or "Give me younger us," their music is much more of a cheeky and almost celebratory reminiscence rather than a purely despondent one. They're angsty without being emo, passionate without being too serious — and they know a thing or two about bringing the noise.

Click to watch Japandroids performing on MTV Live or listen to their latest song "Younger Us" below — another tune bursting with angsty reminiscence, but in the best possible way:

Remember when we had them all on the run?

Happy NXNE everyone!

The secret garden

Summer officially rears its blazing head on the 21st, which leaves only 5 days for any last-minute spring cleaning.

And so, in the spirit of tidiness, I thought I would publish a post that I had started composing in the fall, yet never quite finished.

Et voilà:

The secret garden 
My mother is an avid, passionate gardener, yet a humble one at that. She takes great care of — and immense pleasure in — her backyard garden, but does not require, nor does she even desire, any recognition or acclaim.

I may be slightly biased when I proclaim her garden to be one of the GTA's best kept secrets, but I don't have any problem boasting on her behalf.

It's truly a lush oasis in this smoggy, congested city and I'm thankful for it.

I snapped a few photos of the garden last fall and decided to follow up with a few more in the spring. Perhaps they don't do the garden justice, but here's a little peek anyway:

Fall:

 

Even death has its charms

Spring:

Moths can be pretty too

Bonus: My attempt at a panorama (click for a larger image):

Are you ready for the summer?

Subs, subways and sleep

I'll keep things short and sweet today.

This is the web, after all — readers enjoy their one-sentence paragraphs.

So why not recap my week via bullet points?

Here are some thoughts and events that have been bumming around in my mind as of late:

• Torontonians sure are one drowsy bunch: No matter what time I get on the subway, someone is always sleeping.

• Speaking of subways, my father decided to test out his comedic skills at Subway this week. The disgruntled, teenaged sandwich artist behind the counter remained largely unimpressed. On the other hand, yours truly got quite a chuckle (and a free sub) out of it. I cannot divulge any further details at this point, as I suspect my father has already copyrighted his jokes. 

• Speaking of food, can life not even afford to hand me lemons anymore? I am no longer surprised when a potential employer informs me that well over 150 people applied for the position I am so eager to fill. Someone throw me a bone here. Actually, make it a sub. I'm hungry and I don't particularly enjoy the taste of dog treats.

• Speaking of sleep (see first bullet point), I should really stop using my cell phone as an alarm clock. Using my cell as an alarm means leaving the sound on, which also means being awoken by drunk texters and people who decide — at 2 a.m. — to reply to a message I sent them at 6 p.m.

• Speaking of things near my bed, I have written countless unfinished poems. Perhaps I should write a poem about all of my unfinished poems...and then never finish it. That would be fitting.

• And lastly, speaking of unfinished things, I have slowly started to give my blog a facelift. The change may be drastic or it may be very subtle — only time will tell.

Cheers,

Hilary