Kho-ri-ah

I've been spending the past month contemplating all the things that 2010 brought along to enrich our lives. Was it the year we all hoped it would be? I spent most of the year gorging myself in all things Korean. Writing this, I'm listening to a Korean duo called '10cm'. They're charming, but one thing's certain; I wouldn't be listening to them if they were from the west. Their sound can be described as a korean Jason Mraz, and I despise Mraz. This comparison gains more weight with a video posted on Youtube where the duo sings 'I'm Yours' to some comedic effect due to their terrible english accents. Though I quite like this song:

As I continue, I'm now listening to the musings of another Korean musician. Namely DJ Soulscape who in his latest album from late 2009 mixes sounds from recordings of lost and forgotten Korean Jazz dating back to the 70's. Back then there was a big scene for Jazz and R'n'B centered around the american military bases, where the soldiers would go to relax after drilling exercises. The clampdown on all things cultural by the current president Park Chung-Hee - later assassinated by one of his generals in '79 - meant that many of these recordings were lost, until now. Needless to say, it's pretty cool.

I've been thinking of doing some sort of follow up to last years top 20 list of my favorite songs. But the truth is, I don't think I can make a list that long, or any list really. I could probably give you 5 or 6 favorite new songs, though not much more. So I'm thinking, I'll make a top 20 list of all the things I enjoyed in 2010 and up until now, whether it be old or new, film or candybar. Any and everything I loved in 2010. Watch out.

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DJ Soulscape's Myspace

10cm has no myspace.

Something different

Lists are by their definition an act in redundancy, except when they break from the norm. So I've been thinking, people make far too few lists concerning their favorite remixes (that might be a total fallacy but, yeah), so that's what I'll do. I won't list the remixes that make for the greatest floor burners, but rather a list of the remixes that are able to lend something completely new to a really good song, making it a great track in it's own right. It won't be a top 20 list, like last time, and it won't be a top 10 neither, and damn it, it won't be a top 5 either. I'll be going with a top 6, because I like to be different.

#1 Björk - Wanderlust (Ratatat Remix)

Every man who says that he's not in some small way in love with Björk is a liar, simply put. The intermingling of the world's coolest person (that's Björk) and Ratatat's glorious sound makes for just about the greatest remix I've ever heard.

#2 Florence and the Machine - You've Got the Love (The xx Remix)

Everything The XX does seems to be golden at a very high level. Pristine, if you will. Same goes for this remix. The love is so totally, unmistakably mine.

#3 Pantha Du Prince - Welt Am Draht (Animal Collective Remix)

It could not have gone anyone by that I'm a huge fan of Animal Collective. But this is really the only remix of theirs that I've ever come by. By the hammer of Thor, they're certainly no worse off in this respect.

#4 Friendly Fires - Kiss of Life (Spiral Into the Storm Remix)

Lunging it's way on for 9 minutes of Frindly Fires goodness, this track just can't, shan't, won't be missed. It's good stuff.

#5 Tunes United - Celestial ("Molested" by Unarmed Enemies)

This might be the song I've listened the most too, in my entire life. And that's saying something. It's just always been there, from the day that I got my first iPod, onto todays supercomputer/phone/pornographic imgage distributor that's reffered to as an iPhone. To me it's synonomous with love, life and apples. Apples most of all.

#6 Telex - Moskow Diskow (Carl Craig Remix)

"Moskow Diskow, Miskow Doskow". If that's not the best songwriting ever, well I'll be a son of a gun. I just very recently heard this remix, though I can safely say that it's at least as good an alternative as it's original mix for that exclusive soup buffé that you invite all your friends over for. It's slower and more ponderous than the original. I like.

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On a slight sidenote, The opera produced by The Knife is just fantastic.

Beauty, for what it's worth.

http://www.behance.net/gallery/Pororoca/490617

I find that mondays are usually the best of days. It's when you feel the most morose, angstful and ill tempered. You might not like it at the time, but more often than not, that lemon of a day gets slowly squeezed into delicious porridge. Or is it lemonade?

Whatever the case may be, there is something deeply profound in what we perceive as sadness. All these mixed emotions tangling together for nought but mixed conceptions perceived by our own slanted view of reality. We are in essence being tricked by our bodies to feel this, oh so important emotion. The fact that we through thousands of years of evolution retained the power of emotion and thought, and through that process gained the ability to recognise the huge implications of another human being dying, is what I believe to be beauty.

Prideful incentive

Jon Stewart, the greatest man alive

With new gained experiences comes the trouble of having to process them all into something useful. Making sure to shape the experiences in the right way and not necessarily take it for face value. The summer has been eventful, though it is not without a good bit of relief that I'm finding it to be all but over. While it's been nice, the heat has at times seriously exacerbated my will to, well, acctually do something.

But that's about to change, studies are coming and along with it comes the inspiration for writing in this here blogo-box. That's what I call blogs now. I find that it more clearly depicts how boxed in most blogs are, around the writers oppinions. Not to say that it is wrong for it to be working in that way, since incendiary oppinions and ill informed remarks are usually the most entertaining. Though I don't think anything I've ever written has been incendiary, there most certainly has been some ill informed bits of wordplay on this blogo-box. That will definitely stay the same. As it should.

I do seem to misremember a vague glimmer of a hint that this blog once was about music, which, now that I think about it, isn't a very bad idea. Yeah, I might do that again!

See, I'm the kinda guy that walks around with a "The Doors" t-shirt despite ever really listening to them. The kinda guy who walks around with gigantic headphones only to listen to the Inception soundtrack. I'm a hybrid of a music lover, half man, half goat, if you will.

While my passion for movies is stronger than that for music, the musical world is often more interesting to delve into. As in what it means to people. Because music is this beautiful metaphysical thing, that can invoke any emotion, from giddynes to fear, to all around joy. While film usually is more easily transfixed on one matter, music can mean anything, do anything, say anything to any given guy or gal. Music is one of the most true artforms there are. That is why it's important to me.

This track right here is one of the greatest examples I can think of, when it comes to the great versatility of music. It's a fantastic production from the indie rock duo, Dough Martsch and Brett Nelson of Built to Spill fame. Instead of doing a greatest hits CD, they went ahead and reworked some of their best songs in an 80's, synth heavy style, under the moniker of the Electric Anthology Project. It works very well.

The Electric Anthology Project - At The Where

The don

Donnie Darko, now that's a fuckin' great movie. And the only reason why Jake Gyllenhaal became an established actor. But when it comes to the other Donnie, Don Diablo that is, I've had my doubts. I've found his material hard to listen to sometimes, just like with The Bloody Beetroots's whole Warp 1.9 sound which had me greatly dissapointed in them, just as with the Don. But I did at first really like the Beetroots, who, just like the Don has produced some cool stuff, however scarce, they have to be given credit.

This occasion is, thankfully, instigated to celebrate a track of the latter category. Don Diablo's remix of Swoon by, The Chemical Brothers, is a great celebratory feast for the ears.

And if you don't know any of these two acts, well, what kind of underdeveloped country are you living in? Is it hidden under a rock?

Put it on your iPod playlist, and thank me later!

The Chemical Brothers - Swoon (Don Diablo remix)

SXNE

Things are looking up, speaking in a strictly topographical manner, of course (pun damn well intended). Groovy things are happening a' plenty. Such as the release of Ratatat's fourth (that's 4) studio album, in early june. Well, that's about it, really. But what's to say we shouldn't stay uppy? There have been plenty pseudo interesting things going on as well, like that weird Kronofonika project, with those two freakishly untalented (topographically speaking, that is) individuals taking turns to deliver tracks each and every day. Juggling that with study and work, well hey, that can't be difficult at all. I strenuously imagine them working like feverish little ants in front of their computers to piece everything together. And that fantasy leads me to the scene in Oldboy where the leading actress has visions of loneliness embodied by riding a subway with only a single ant, peering sideways at the obscene structure. One of my favorite scenes out of a movie, ever, I think.

Korean cinema really is booming, in terms of creativity. Right now I'd say it's the very most edgy moviemaking industry in that aspect. Even though Korean movies usually are amazingly violent and bloody affairs, it is never without a sense of satirical or deeper purpose that a knife is plunged into someones chest. And never has stupid-villain syndrome ever touched the minds of Korean filmmakers, "thank" fuckin' "christ" for that.

Korean music, though, I don't know much about. I think the guys over at Kronofonika generally are more interesting when you touch on that particular subject.

Kolthrast and 253, are the pseudonym's of Kronofonika's resident master cooks of audial delight. They might come off as a tad pretentious, when they're able to cram down a single beat into a 2 hour track, expecting us to listen to all of it. But they're nice people, though. No, really. Leading them off into our topogaphic sunset, will be their own musical works. Take it away!

253 - Yamaha Handy Sound HS-200 First Session

Kolthrast - Sunday Roast

The day is a differential subject

When waiting for all that is to come, I like to sit down and think through that future which eludes me in sight. The possible outcomes of not doing what is expected, of doing what is by definition "wrong", or courageous. It all seems so vividly colorful and promising at first glance. And when that day comes, nothing really is as it was supposed to, for that simple reason of not having control. Realizing that the strings built up in my mind always are wrought down by the simple expedient of mental control over all that is around me. It's simple really, I, perhaps we, need to stop overanalyzing.

But that is where the problem arises. I would interpret an intellectual being as one who has the ability to properly think in an analytical fashion. So for me it isn't quite so easy as to say to myself to just, "go with my gut". At least in a way that would be considered truly spontaneous, or perhaps in some matters of social conduct, acceptable. In that I cannot decide upon one or the other without large portions of deliberation of what to do, or say. I am, by most definitions, a social pariah. It all comes with a great bit of self indulgance to be able to view myself in this manner.

That thought, that singular notion of me, me as an individual is the single greatest resource I have in the struggle to manufacture an idea of what we, as human beings really are. And that makes me more than happy to be the social pariah. Or atleast to act as one. Life has become a spectator sport for all intents and purposes. I suppose I am in the hunt for truth, however self serving, however inconsequential, I need that sense of reason. Even if it is a sort of intellectual masturbation.

I think the end result can only be this: I believe in summer.

And I believe in the birth and death of day.

Explosions In the Sky - The Birth and Death of the Day

The reason to multiply.

I feel reinvigorated to some degree. Which can only conclude in the hilariously defective act of tribulating you all with a blog post. Oh, and the summer winds sway. Sway you closer, closer to me.

Joseph Gordon-Levitt is the new caretaker of one of my many Celebrity crushes. Or should I say, actor crushes? I'd like to say that I attribute my feelings to his acting prowess, which is why I need the title, if only to regress any form of self delusion.

How then, is it that I deify this person to such an extent that I would divulge my deviant sexuality, you ask?

Ah, that question is mighty easy to answer. It is with utmost reverance I present one of the greatest productions of indie short film comedy, ever to grace my dear eyesockets.

It is on the collaboratory site, Hitrecord.org, that our most regular of Joe's proposes his creative ideas, and the ideas of others to be coupled together into a fine mish mash of, visual and audial, craftsmanship. There the users are welcomed to be creative with what others have made and uploaded. Then when Joe, or one of his partners sees an opportunity to produce the material into a money making product, they jump in to do so with their substantial financial backing. And when the final product is done they give everyone who worked on it a part of the earnings. Sounds like a pretty neat idea to me.

To make matter's even better, here's a song by Animal Collective.

They are simply that good.

Animal Collective - Peacebone

Let There Be horns

I was searching for videos on the subject of, "Humanimals". A select group of people who wear makeup to make them look like animals, which, too me is kinda interesting. Now, this video has none of the sort. Only a distraught minotaur dealing with everyday problems. I think we've all felt the urge to just smash up an antique store every now and then. See these mythological creatures aren't very different from us, when you look up close.

The video contains the musical workings of a mr. RJD2, and is directed by Thom Glunt.

Too cool for school

I try to be a serious man, a man of stature and common grace. I try to implement the simple ideals of good heartedness. But not half as hard as Larry Gopnik does. Neither do I fail to be rewarded for it so gravely as this man. He is a man of silent contemplation, a man not of grand disposures of guilt or sadness, unless called for. The question is, what is a man to do when his life crumbles apart. In fact not in any number of recollectable pieces, but in pieces so minute they might be lost to him forever.

He may not solve them with mathematic equations, of which Mr. Gopnik is very apt. Neither with an afternoon of smoking pot with that uncannily hot neighbor. In the end the answer is probably just that nobody knows, you just have to take everythaing a day at a time.

I'd like to honor the man that is Larry Gopnik with an epic poem in the style of Bruno K. Öijer, that of being inanely short.

*

When the truth is found to be lies.

And all the joy within you dies.

Don't you want somebody to love?

*

Jefferson Airplane - Somebody To Love

Link removed upon request.

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You all need to see this movie.

Eloquent language

With the holiday cheer coming over us, and that familiar growing sense of stress and incapability to give your loved ones what they deserve seeps into us, I can't help but sing a tune and perhaps do a jigg. As you cloth that pagan partytree of yours, perhaps you'd want some good tunes to put that jingle in your tingle. For you, I'm compiling my top 20 tracks of the past year.

#1 Animal Collective - In The Flowers

I could easily fill the top eleven of this list with every song from Merriweather Post Pavilion but that would be boring, wouldn't it? The opening track of Merriweather is such a wonderfully romantic and just allround beautiful piece of music.

#2 Boys Noize - Gax

Gax is more melodic and not quite as frantic as many of Rhida's other tracks, held together by an intro, bridge and outro. My love for Boys Noize is undying.

#3 Beach House - Norway

This track really envelopes itself into that blanket of the hypnogogic aesthetic, and never seizes to be so cozy and lovable, delivering an incredibly lush and uplifting experience.

#4 Something A La Mode - Rondo Parisiano feat. Karl Lagerfeld

A crazy exersise in music, that I had on my iPod for an extent of six months before listening to it. Yeah, I'm bad at catching up on my tunes. Any track that utilizes the fashion designer with a thousand rings is awesome in my book.

#5 Danger - 00:01 feat. Vyle

One might wonder why french electro and hip hop hasn't been mixed more in the past. French wonderkid, Danger, shows us all how it's done.

#6 Mumford & Sons - Little Lion Man

Mumford has produced some great folk rock, and their album released not long ago is most likely after Merriweather my second favorite album to listen through in one sitting. Picking one favorite wasn't an easy task. But just try and not sing along in the chorus on this one, I dare you.

#7 Tim Exile - Family Galaxy

My god, how about that Tim Exile. He's so cool I wanna be him. If Pink Floyd and Modeselektor had a retarded child that in return for his lack of motoric skills got the amplified musical visionary of his parents, Tim would be him. And this track is the best example of just that.

#8 Faux Pas - Silver Line

Capturing the essence of dreams with it's mellow yet frantic sound. Closing my eyes I feel like I'm flying over some green and desolate landscape, with beauty it's sole purpose for being.

#9 Mille - Crysteena

The track that made the summer forme. I listened to it so many times that I basically lived it. I lived the life of a cybernetic machine, living tissue over metal endoskeleton, and I've just now woken up. But I want to go back.

#10 Cleast Eatwood - Get Related

That's what she said.

#11 The XX - Crystalised

I love the way the two voices intertwine in this song. These kids sing so well about teen angst, love and need that I sometimes feel like they're singing about my life.

#12 Good Luck At The Gunfight - Kimberly

I wish I knew this Kimberly, sounds like she's that kinda girl that you could just take home and play scrabble with, you know, and just shut up for a bit.

#13 Hurts - Wonderful Life

Man, Hurts has produced one song so far, but what a frickin song! This guy will be the shit in 2010.

#14 Neon Indian - Terminally Chill

I'll have to agree with the peaple who hate the term chill wave. But the word, chill, just seems to exemplify this track so well, thus the name.

#15 Blake Miller - Tomorrow Sorrow

Blake Miller could lull me to sleep with his amazingly tender voice every night. Everything from the thumping sound in the background, to the wonderfully grated guitar play just speaks to me on such a basic level.

#16 Ganache - In Pidgin

The church organ underlining the vocalists awesome baritone voice makes me smile every time. I wish everything was in pidgin.

#17 Grizzly Bear - While You Wait For The Others

Grizzly bear being on this list was really a no brainer. It was only a matter of time before they got their big break. This is the track off the album I'm most in love with, and it's probably the one mostly resembling their earlier work.

#18 Discovery - I Want You Back

A Jackson 5 hit redone by one part Vampire Weekend and one part Ra Ra Riot. Sign me the fuck up!

#19 Washed Out - Feel it all around

The soft synths in this tune make it just about the greatest song ever to fall asleep to, and so I have many a time.

#20 Deadmau5 - Strobe

The Way this track builds up to it's eventual six minute mark climax is just jaw dropingly awesome.

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It's been a fairly good year, and hopefully you wasted it listening to good music, like I did.

They're alive!

Since the day when I first rented Creep Show 2 from the video store at the age of 12 I've been obsessed with an age I haven't even lived. But that only serves to magnify the mystique of this era long past. I'd gorge in movies like Evil Dead, Karate Kid and Scarface. My eyes would glisten as Bruce Campbell fights the living dead in one of the greatest horror movies of all time, or when Daniel LaRusso makes that final kick in the rising up story that has defined so many lives. The color, the style, the music, the cars, the clothes, the absence of cellphones, twitter and facebook are very befitting of my romantic soul. 

The whole sunny day, ice cream aesthetic is fantastic but there's also the fact that the 80's were the horror movie age. Some of the greatest horror movies were made in the 80's. They simply don't make them that way anymore, in fact the best they can do is just to remake these old classics, and for every time they screw it up so momentously a sinlge tear runs down my cheek. The mission is no longer to scare but to shock, the companies spit out these awful films, making they're money off of stupid teenagers who've been led to believe that this is what horror movies entail. 

These movies are derivative, ugly, full of stereotypes and just plain stupid. That encompasses about 90% of all horror movies produced today. And they'll continue to be produced because people just don't expect much from horror movies anymore. We are no longer able to sympathize with our protagonist but are rather no short of wanting to see them dead, that, is a huge failure from the movie business. Our protagonists are loudmouthed, unapologetic assholes, who you want to see die. Now take for instance, The Thing, from 84. Not in any part of the movie do you acctually see the whole monster, and our protagonist is an intelligent and likable man. You stay scared throughout, making up these versions in your head of how this horrible creation must look, all the while being scared for our protagonists life. Some things were basically better in the 80's. 

Neither can they make parodies like the Naked Gun anymore, or disaster movies like... shit, there's never been any good disaster movies. 

Some day I'll build my time machine. Taking Doc 's idea to a whole new level and attaching the flux capacitor to the rear of my skateboard. Hitting the streets of days long past with my Delorean DMC 12 before shooting Rutger Hauer in a nightclub for dancing with my 80's girl, but only after outmanouvering those hoodlum chumps on my nuclear powered skateboard. All in one day's work.

I'll later retire to my cabin up in north country where I would grow a beard and chop wood all day, wear my belt straps so high that my waistline doesn't exist and fight the living dead, human corpses possessed by demons from the lower circles of hell. At the sight of my mighty woodsman's beard they would not stand a chance, rotten flesh would prove no match when I had been cutting north country wood. My skin would no longer be that, but bear more of a resemblance to a tree's bark. I would light up a fire with my north country wood and perhaps read a good book, pontificate on recent events and maybe take a bath in my 80's bath tub. I'd later be shocked that there was no possibilities for cable TV in my Cabin, dumbfounded at how anyone would wanna live without it, I'd grab my skateboard and get the hell out of there. I'd have the time of my life though, if only for a short time.

Oh, and the music was good too.

This DJ set isn't really music from the 80's but at the same time it embodies the era so well for me. Anything the Valerie golden boys Outrunners does is gold, regardless.

The Outrunners - DJ set @ Razzmatazz