The Cool

Lupe Fiasco's The Cool is source for a pretty good time. I'm not a big rap or hip-hop listener, but I was drawn to Fiasco's political and mostly substantial lyrics (compared to the bitches & hoes, big money, nice cars and killing people lyrics that other rappers seem to be so fond of). In his song "The Coolest," Fiasco takes on the personality of a corrupt authority figure, bragging of his violent and greedy tendencies, obviously calling them out on their ethics and behavior. In "Little Weapons," Fiasco tells stories of the younger generation influenced by our violence-saturated culture and acting on aggressions. He directly compares a child playing a shooting game to a soldier in Iraq. Most of his lyrics are evidently passionate and driven by slower R&B beats; however, some of them fall into a seemingly, very long chapter of an audiobook when Lupe's monotonous rapping is droned by such slow and repetitive bars. I also have no idea why Fiasco had Pete Whatshisface from Fall Out Boy produce one of his tracks.

Paola came over for dinner last night. Good times.

I made toasted garlic bread with mozzarella (pre-melted mozzerralla):
To dip with bruschetta (it was good I swear):
And eat with salad:
Yumness. I'm hungry.

The day before, Alex Ho and I went shopping where he bought a pair of Miu Miu moon shoes and I got a pair of fishing boots; we love:
Around the tree-house:
I watched a documentary on a pastor named Fred Phelps today. Showtime has the movie "Fall from Grace" on demand. Anyway, Phelps is notorious for his sermons and picketing on anti-homosexuality, hateful interpretation and exploitation on the Bible, and his Cryptkeeper-like appearance. Some of his signs carried by his family members and grandchildren at pickets read "god hates fags" and "thank god for 9/11." The documentary was incredibly fascinating, and even though nobody should pay his ignorance any mind, it was shocking to learn that there are people like this are living in our country; they're absolutely awful. I've attended Catholic school for 7 years and Christians are not like this at all, and the Bible was certainly NOT meant to be interpreted that way.

On a lighter note, Happy 2008! Here's to a new year of goodness, happiness and self-improvement.
Love to you all!

Currently Listening to:
Michael Cera & Ellen Page in their Golden Globe Nominated Film, "Juno" - Anyone Else But You
Philip Glass - Violin Concerto with the Ulster Orchestra

New Camera

The fun begins!

I'm sitting at home watching Art School Confidential on Showtime. I think anyone in art school would find it really amusing.

A Happy Christmas

This Christmas was spent in snowy Newton, MA with family. I forget how quickly kids grow; the 3 baby boyz of cousins Steve and June are now screaming, kicking...angels. With the youngest at 2, the eldest at 5 and the oldest at 7, Cameron, Brian and Andrew are fully engaged in video games, food and endless conversations on video games and food.

Description of events through Christmas List:
1.) Super Mario Galaxy: Way too much Wii time. Way too much talk about Mario, repressed urges to bury Wii console.
2.) Mario Olympics: Way too much promotion for the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. My body still aches from the simulated swimming, fencing and running. Family's favorite event: ping pong.
3.) Razor scooters: Resulted in Cameron's hurt toe, thanks to his older brothers.
4.) TouchPods for everyone: money for me.
5.) AquaDoodle with Thomas the Train: Perhaps the coolest present of all. Drew stick figures with a water marker and track stamp, which Thomas magically followed with its humidity detector.
6.) Remote controlled helicopter: Provided about 3 minutes of entertainment until I piloted the chopper straight into the wall and cracked the propeller, whoops.
7.) About 32 other wrapped presents: Demolished Mommy and Daddy's effort and time in wrapping and hiding the presents.

June and I playing with crawling baby Cameron. My sister Camille testing out the effects of a water felt-tipped marker on cardboard:
Cameron in his early modeling stages; me confused at what family's yelling about (ping pong) and Camille rubbing her eyes as the result of poking herself:

Christmas was lovely and I got everything I could ever ask for: time with a full-house of loud Chinese family members, the company of the cool new Swedish nanny who's actually my age, Ida, and an AquaDoodle Set with Thomas.

Hope everyone's Christmas was everything you wished for too.

New Year's Resolution: Get lipo or drop 20 pounds.

Currently Listening to:
Lupe Fiasco's the Cool - Lupe Fiasco
I like it so far, and will tell you exactly why after a few days of digestion.

Unravelling

My last blog has clearly caused much controversy and scandal...among all...2 people. SO much controversy that they had to go out of their way to make blogger profiles to share their thoughts. There have been an incredible 50+ hits since then. (As opposed to the usual 1) Hey, any opinion expressed will always have some disagreement--well, those who understand what's being said anyway.

After this sleepless week, which might actually seem like one long night, the semester will be over and our class will be split up. I've grown to really love my section (mini-family omgz) Words cannot describe the gratitude I have for meeting and learning with such a lively, intelligent group. Sappy sap sap. Barf. I've accepted my emotional attachment to these darlings.

I'm ready for winter break and for Christmas. In fact, SO ready for Christmas, that Nicky and I gave our house a makeover. I wish we had a tree!

Nicky working on her masterpiece with trim and staples and clear scotch tape:
Finished masterpiece:
My living room piece, which turned out looking like a Christmas display for elves/midgets/children:OMGZ so CUTsEyZ!!

Currently Listening to:

Lip Gloss and Stockings

In response to an empowering and inspiring blog I recently read, I've decided to rekindle the Thanksgiving spirit and take time out to give thanks for 21 things in my life:

1. My money and my Brooklyn house: duh.
2. Fashion: my passion.
3. Lip gloss: the key to flawless beauty on Glamour Shots.
4. Audrey Fuckin' Hepburn: need I say more?
5. Art and all that shit in the N-Y-Shizzle: a playground of inspiration.
6. Corporate brands: where else can I present shit on a dish and have thousands of middle-class people buy it to pool in millions of dollars?
7. My cat, Charlie :)
8. God: for my looks and talent and intelligence.
9. Mary: for God.
10. Ruben Toledo: the man with a hand for style.
11. Stockings: for keeping a sexy woman warm in the winter.
12. My vintage Roberto Cavalli leopard sequined dress: again, duh.
13. J: truly defining the word "fab" and staying by my side through thick and thin, rough and smooth, easy-sailing and tsunami, paved road and no road.
14. Funny things: things that make you laugh outloud, even to myself, even if it makes me look crazy.
15. Music: for blocking out the crazies begging on the subway.
16. My friends outside of NYC: for being the stepping stones I needed to get to where I am now.
17. Tory Burch: for designing the most innovative pair of flats womankind has ever seen.
18. White wine: because I'm not perfect and sometimes need help unwinding :)
19. Summer, fall, winter, spring: it's nice to have a change.
20. My friends in the city: Stephen, Spencer, Lauren, Heidi, Lisa, Whitney, Jordan, Brian, Audrina, Elodie, Jennifer, Colton, Jennifer for being my posse.
21. Oh yea, and like, my family.

:)

A-Múm-zing

Very delayed entry.

Jason, Tiff and I went to the Wordless Music Festival on the 10th at the Society for Ethical Culture near Lincoln Center. I've had these tickets to see Múm since July, and iTunes can confirm that I listen to them to the point most people might want to vomit at the thought of "Iceland." Needless to say I was really excited to see them perform. The concept itself, a wordless music festival, was really appealing as well.

Hauschka opened the show with his "prepared piano." The skinny man with crazy hair and a blazer on top of a T-shirt from Düsseldorf, Germany, certainly kicked off the show with his eccentric sounds from taping the piano chords together, causing rattling noises upon the striking of certain keys. I really loved his performance and ended up buying his latest album, Room to Expand. It's easy for pianists to bore certain audiences, but the quirky sounds of Hauschka certainly keeps your attention.

After Hauschka, David Moore of Bing and Ruth performed a Bach piece on the piano. He deserves recognition and respect as a musician, and his passion for music was clearly evident in his movement, facial expression and seemingly entranced stated of mind, but his piece put much of the audience to sleep (literally). The only purpose I saw of this piece was to establish his band's identity as a more serious and traditional group, their pieces jam-packed with emotion--so much emotion that one of the singers broke into tears. Bing and Ruth's pieces were very monotonous and hard to enjoy in this context.

FINALLY, Múm came on stage after a brief intermission for a 105 minute set! They played all the hits from every one of their albums, and played them very closely to the recordings on the albums. The girls were clearly having a blast performing. Everyone was enjoying the moment and opportunity to perform at the church, and the audience enjoyed their music, their presence and energy, as well. My heart is racing just thinking about the performance and I can't properly articulate my feelings; I remember wishing it'd never end and feeling a musical high, which I hadn't experienced from the previous concerts I attended.



(*Sigh)

School has been great, as usual, but stressful, as I've taken on an internship on top of my job and I'm still trying to balance everything. No complaints at all, as everything is very important and worthy, but a personal assistant or winning the lottery would certainly help. Thanksgiving break is coming and I've caught up on sleep so I'm in good spirits.

Currently Listening to: Detektivbryan - Nattappet
Dings and beeps are a sure easy way into my heart and music library.

"A" Distraction

Questionnaire Proust Redux

Your favorite virtue?
Honesty

Your favorite qualities in a man?
Integrity, manners, charm, humor

Your favorite qualities in a woman?
Grace, integrity, style, humor

Your favorite occupation?
Reading

Your chief characteristic?
Independence

Your idea of happiness?
Biking through Tibetan valleys

Your idea of misery?
Computer work all day everyday

Your favorite color and flower?
Burgundy and orchids

If not yourself, who would you be?
Cynthia Rowley

Where would you like to live?
Greenwich Village, Paris

Your favorite prose authors?
Capote, Vonnegut, Huxley

Your favorite painters and composers?
Schiele, Klimt, Philip Glass

Your favorite food and drink?
Oysters and white grape martinis

Your pet aversion?
Belching--poor manners

What is your present state of mind?
Calm, content

What fault have you most toleration?
Sloppiness

Your favorite motto?
They'll get over it.

I Saw Stars

Kinda late, but I haven't been feeling like writing these past few weeks.

Trey and I went to see Stars and New Buffalo at Town Hall on the 19th. One of the most romantic and even empowering shows so far. It was everything I expected it to be: Stars were throwing out roses and other flowers to their audience, people were standing up and singing along, friends and lovers seemed ecstatic to be there in each other's company; there was a bond going on between everybody at the show--lots of positive energy. This show was especially significant for me because I started listening to Stars years ago, and they were the band that sparked my interest in music. Since then, I spent hours and hours sorting through and exploring all different genres and styles of musicians, which, I couldn't imagine being without at this point.
Currently, I'm listening to a lot of instrumental music: Explosions in the Sky, old Piano Magic, Mum, James Blackshaw, etc. etc. Placing all the art and work in the instruments allows the listener to imagine the story and mood of the songs, which to me, is very soothing. It's a bit difficult to articulate but I guess it serves as a semi-meditation.

Speaking of meditation, I want to start planning a cycling trip in Lhasa, China, possibly taking place in early May. Basically you bike around Tibet, through the mountain valley, stopping to visit the small villages, the temples, the monks. It seems like 12 days of pure bliss.

Other than that, things around here and at school are all right. I've shifted gears (finally) and have adjusted to the workload and necessary time management. The midpoint of the semester has just passed and things are rolling along smoothly.

Next Friday is the Mum concert with Tiffany and I'm SOO EXCITED OMGZ! It's a show I've been looking forward to for months and months.

Things

Things.
Have been relatively good.

School's been keeping me busy, but I've been pacing along nicely. Pacing along so nicely that Nicky and I went to see Jose Gonzalez at the Music Hall of Williamsburg last weekend. That following day Tiff and I went to see Animal Collective at Webster Hall.Jose's show seemed very close and intimate, despite the massive crowd behind us (we were standing in second row). His performances matched his album tracks exactly, sounding about ten times better being 5 feet away from him. He played tracks from both Veneer and In Our Nature. I have to say that when he and his two bandmates (one playing the hand drums and the other a cowbell) played Teardrops, I felt overwhelmed with euphoria and hysteria. I wanted to close my eyes and cry. Needless to say, it was a great show.

Animal Collective, on the other hand, was but a deafening noise fest. I know they're notorious for being that loud, but the volume was to the point where I felt like I was going to orgasm from the vibration of the bass. Honest. The sound settings at Webster Hall was messed up and not only did they NOT perform any of their hits or tracks from Feels, but stopped amidst Fireworks because of the distracting sound settings. It was pretty disappointing. Nonetheless, and as usual, I had a grand time with Dylan and Tiff.

Anyway, I'm trying to keep the blog updated but it's getting more difficult by the day.

Next show is Architecture in Helsinki next Thursday.

When the Sun Shines We'll Shine Togetha

Rihanna's Umbrella has been stuck in my head all day for the past three days. I can't help it.

School's started and it's been alright, I guess. I can't think of much to say here other than it's taking some time to get used to the flow of things. The thought of creating mood boards and drawing a million croquis for the rest of my life from this point on is kind of dreadful.

That's all for now, my mind isn't functioning 100% this morning.

Back to Pooplyn and Poo York City

Shelter Island seems more beautiful with every trip. The weather was clear and sunny and hot; Nicky and I went to the beach, played with the babies, went to the beach, watched a movie, went to the beach, went exploring at the docks, went exploring through Greenport. The stinging sunburn on my back feels good, serving as a reminder of the hours sunbathing, picking out rocks and splashing around in the ocean. The fact that Nicky came too simply made the whole trip a hundred times better. I didn't miss music, I didn't miss my phone or the internet. I was so happy to be with people I love in such a perfect place. I felt like I didn't need anything.

The moment we came back to eastern Long Island on the ferry, past the docks and past the cozy town of Greenport, with its low-story townhouse shops and restaurants, was the moment I decided that I will live in a sea-faring town. Greenport seems most likely so far.

Another perfect weekend on Shelter Island; a last taste of this summer before classes start on Tuesday. The wait for the bus ride back to filthy loud Manhattan was perhaps the most depressing 15 minutes of my life. The sunlight made the ocean glitter between the surrounding green trees and fields and docks full of sail boats and short strips of sand. I can't find the words to accurately describe the grief over summer other than this heavy dread and ache in my chest; I feel like something has died. Of course, I say this only after enjoying such a wonderful summer, and I appreciated every day of these past three months.

There's no choice but to get back into school and New York City. I'm sure most people can relate. Hopefully the year will go by smoothly and quickly so next summer may be as incredible as this one. Best wishes to everyone for this year. I raise a glass to that.

Sorry Been a Little M.I.A.

I'm a big fan of M.I.A.'s new album, Kala. It's not as one-track as her previous album, Arular, but contains Bollywood, hip-hop, and electronic influences in addition to her tribal drum beats and almost monotonous chanting of politically fueled lyrics. Featured guests of Kala include rapper Timbaland, as well as the talented kids of The Wilcannia Mob.

She opens the album with "Bamboo Banga," telling her listeners that "M.I.A. comin' back with power POWER." "Boyz" is driven steadily by heavy hitting drums, tambourines, a Bollywood singer's track and audience cheers. "Mango Pick Down River" opens with Kenyan horns which provide the steady vibration for The Wilcannia Mob and M.I.A.'s rapping of poverty and survival skills. "XR2" is a loud track of repetitive trumpet sequences, high octaves followed by a low. The bridge contains a toned down bar before a steadily increasing trumpet brings back the catchy trumpet sequence to finish the final chorus of the track.

Go listen, really. M.I.A. is performing at a new Brooklyn Bowery presented venue called "Termial 5." Judging by the lineup of Terminal 5, it seems to be a pretty big deal. The National will their first guests, followed by M.I.A., The Decemberists, The Shins, and Justice. Too bad I missed out on M.I.A.'s show since tickets were sold out within the first day or two.

Today will be another day of waiting for the cable guy. I'm expecting him at 4:00PM since the appointment is for 10:00AM-2:00PM.

Nicky's here (thank goodness). She's been here for about a week and we really haven't done much this past week. We attended the useless fashion majors orientation Wednesday and it truly was the biggest waste of 5 hours. We got to see some fellow classmates but I realized that a lot of the cool people I knew last year were of other majors. I also realized I don't know 90% of the other fashion majors or what to expect from this year.

Tonight I'll be going to Shelter Island with Nicky for the last time this year. Will be back Sunday!

Sleepy Mii

So shleepy. ZzZzZZZzzZ...

Totoro, please, I love you.

Whoopsies

Sorry for the delay in posting, it's been unusually hectic (as always).

I JUST moved into my new apartment/house in Williamsburg on Saturday. The house is really nice and homey; Nicky and I get the whole house to ourselves. It's the guest-house behind a larger house so we're kind of hidden from the main street, as the window views are of the giant peach tree right outside. The living space, kitchen and dining area are on the ground floor and our bedrooms are at the floor above. I'm not taking pictures because I want you to come visit and actually see the place. Also because it hasn't been fully furnished yet.

School starts in 2 weeks, and I'm not looking forward to going back at all. After having such an awesome summer at the beach, the barns, in Vermont, with kids, with friends, etc., the thought spending days and nights at the crappy Parsons facilities is absolutely dreadful. Maybe when school rolls around, I'll adjust to the cold weather and sleep patterns. Sigh.

Work at the lab has gotten worse. I'm getting tired of being there, dealing with my ridiculous boss.

On a brighter note, Nicky will be coming this Friday. Our Wii will come soon as well. Along with many of our friends who've been away traveling or home this summer. House-warming party to come, for sure.

I've also purchased tickets to the following:
-Animal Collective
-Jose Gonzalez
-Architecture in Helsinki
-Stars
-Mum
SO EXCITED!!!

Currently Listening to:
Justice - †
Funky bass guitar picks, remixed orchestral, absolutely strut-worthy snares and beats, downgraded vocals are held together with the most obnoxious buzzing ever. As usual, the Daft Punk influence is definitely there. Thanks to Dylan for turning me on to this.

MP3: Justice - Phantom

Má Fama

Portuguese radio station and blog. Awesome.

Also Awesome:
Jose Gonzalez's new video, Down the Line from his forthcoming album, In Our Nature.

A Print in Progress:

Explosive Frogs

Múm -

Kiss, Kiss

Got back from Vermont a few hours ago. The trip was wonderful, as usual. Can't even tell you what my favorite part was; there were too many. Watching Kathy Griffin fake-fall out of a London cab/get hit in the face by a branch/sneak into Hilary Clinton's pictures on television with Nicky was certainly one of them. We went swimming at "Big Rock," which was actually a...big, rock half submerged in water where I surprisingly didn't drown and ants crawled up girly parts.

The big plans for last weekend failed. Two of the apartments were immediately rented and a few didn't e-mail back promptly. We drove around and saw a few apartments in Brooklyn. East Williamsburg was too industrial and barren for our safety standards, Bushwick...was like Jamaica, Greenpoint was very nice and Polish, but painful to get to Midtown, and Williamsburg looks like our target neighborhood. This is obvious not because we want to be a part of the filthy snooty hipster scene, but we'll get more space for our Wii and stay as close to Manhattan as possible for less money. Plus there are hand rolled freshly baked bagels and restaurants on Bedford Avenue which will make for good eating.

Nicky and Daddy Nicky will be back tomorrow for a final day of hunting and we're just going to have to settle for what we get.

On Repeat: Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Is Is EP
YYYs recorded some songs between 2002 and 2006 which were never included in the albums. Down Boy starts with a steady organ chord accompanied by the initial snares and drum kicks until Karen O's chanting "down boy, down/count me down" sends the band into a heavily synchronized beat backed by steady crowd hand claps.

Kiss, Kiss is a faster paced track starting with quickly ticking drum sticks and picking guitar strings. The chorus sounds a bit like a rolling storm of loud guitar, fast drumming and almost indecipherable vocals based on a series of chords to set the listener in a rebellious rowdy FUCK YEAH attitude.

Overall I'm very fond of YYYs' Is Is EP but Down Boy and Kiss, Kiss are on repeat.

Also On Repeat: MP3: Mates of State's For the Actor

Big Plans

This past weekend has been marvelous, as usual. I went to Shelter Island with the babies and realized that I love them, so much. We went clamming (it was my first time) by the docks. The sky was clear and the weather was warm and very sunny; my skin is almost as tan it could be.

Most importantly, while we were at the beach, the boy, Jasper and I decided to play water tag, nothing new. Then after awhile we got really into it and before I even realized it, my feet were no longer touching the ground and my arms were moving; OMGZ I WAS SWIMMING!!! To my amusement I tried to doggy paddle, which I did successfully. We had cake that night in celebration. Highlight of the weekend.

Nicky is coming this weekend and we're getting an apartment so that's a really big deal. We'll see how this goes.

Busy busy busy work work work.

October 19th is the Stars concert at Town Hall. Already got orchestra seats for the show. Mmmm. Because they were the indie pop band that started the deep interest in contemporary upcoming artists, this show means a great deal to me. I've been waiting 4 years to see them in concert and this will be it! As Tiff always says, "I'm piddling in my panties."

Confession

I can't help but love Madonna. That's just the way it is. Just watch her Confessions Tour that she aired a few months ago. Made me want nothing more than to go dancing at a gay club at 2AM.

The Underdog Here at Night

Ah, Stars, my first ever "indie" band. A follow up to their wonderful Set Yourself on Fire album in 2004, In the Bedroom After the War is another upbeat, innocent, very pop-y album comprised of more mellow duet singing and sound-clips of old speeches and readings, soft drum snares and low organ keyboard chords. Who couldn't fall in love with Amy Millan's voice? (She also has a solo, more folk-y album)

Their actual palpable album is set to release on September 25th (a big date) but their legal digital download is available as of July 10th, only 4 days after its completion. Stars is also going on tour in the US and they'll be performing at NY's Town Hall. I'm still waiting for tickets to go on sale.

MP3: Stars - The Night Starts Here

I also got the new Spoon album, Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga. It's a touchy subject, so I won't address it much. Non-Spoon-heads will certainly find this album all hit-or-miss.

MP3: Spoon - The Underdog

Menomena is playing tonight at South Street. Wish I wasn't sick.

The next show, Brazilian Girls is on the 22nd at Central Park, but I'm missing that because of the babies. Big fat sigh.

So I guess the next show I can actually attend will be Blonde Redhead on August 5th at McCarren Pool, Brooklyn.

Alas, internet radio will NOT be shut down on July 15th. That's all that's important for now.

This Deserves its Own Post:

September 30th - Animal Collective at Webster Hall

November 10th - Múm AT WORDLESS MUSIC FESTIVAL OMGOMGOMGOMG

Epiphany on the Ferry

Friday morning I took the Hamptons Charter Bus through Long Island to the shore. This was, by far, the most beautiful ride I've ever had. The sky was clear and sunny and there wasn't much traffic. We passed the countryside where many farms and crops were grown; I saw miles down the farms from the road. There were wineries every quarter mile, local country houses, tractors, grass, etc. etc. Then I got to Greenport to take the ferry to Shelter Island. Walked past the docks and the sailboats and more sailboats. It was at the departing moment on the ferry when I decided that I wanted to live around these parts with my own sailboat(s).

Shelter Island was of course, wonderfully pleasant. Small beaches, horse barns, lots of trees and grass and local stores. Lots of very rich people who spend millions of dollars on their Shelter Island beach houses just so they can come every weekend from their gorgeous Manhattan apartments. The island reminded me a bit of Rhode Island.

The mom is publicist and production manager and the dad is a designer for Ralph Lauren. Their house looked like it came straight out of the pages of like, Hampton's Ralph Lauren Homes. (It quite possibly did, with all the interior designs magazine lying around.) The house was beautiful.

Jasper, boy, is 4 years old and Francesca, girl, is 2 years old (terrible two's!). It took some time to break the ice with them but I'm working on it!!

I fell in love with the family after horseback-riding, going to the beach everyday, etc. etc.

It was a hectic weekend, but worth it all in the end.

OK Tiffany is blogging about her travels around the world and children in Cambodia and here I am, thinking Shelter Island and Ralph Lauren are grand.

I Summon YOU

I've been waiting for Nicky Digital to publish their pictures from Irving Plaza for a whole MONTH! Too bad most of their pictures weren't that wonderful. However, remember when I told you the guitarist from CSS gave me a vibrator toward the end of the show? Yep. That's my arm.

It's OK; I'd be jealous too.

Right now I'm listening to "I Summon You" by Spoon on new Bose headphones and decided a few hours ago that this is one of my favorite songs of all time.

Tomorrow night is the Fujiya & Miyagi show at South Street. Too bad I'll be away. Sigh. It starts at 7PM.

Next Show: Spoon at Rockefeller Park on Wednesday

RA RA!

Who needs sleep when you have places to be, people to meet and things to do? I'm running on 3 hours of sleep. I'll give it five minutes before my head hits the keyboard.

Work has been busy, in a good way. I just took on a second job as a babysitter and I'll be out on Shelter Island every weekend now, making sand castles at the beach and playing miniature golf with the babies. Not complaining yet.

Today I decided to venture to Southstreet by myself since Snowden was going to play as a part of the RiverToRiver Festival with Ra Ra Riot. Got there and found out that Snowden cancelled, and 2 other bands will open for Ra Ra Riot, who has been bumped up as the star band of the night. The first two bands were sad groups of people whose names I don't even remember. I even left after the first set thinking the wait wouldn't be worth it, until Edward jumped on me and I met up with him and Jordan.

So I stayed with Jordan.
FINALLY Ra Ra Riot came on. I found myself forgetting where I was because their energy and playfulness with each other totally stole my heart. Allie played the electric cello while Becky played the electric violin; being the two only girls meant standing at the front of the stage and often laughing at each other. They were so into their role in the band that the way they played made it seem somewhat spiritual/orgasmic. It was beautiful.

The lead singer, though, reminded me a bit of the lead singers from terrible bands such as the Ataris, where their voice is high-pitched and their face is twisted into a look of constipation and pain, head always cocked to the side as if there is an excruciating pain in their neck.

One of the guitarists was totally a dork, the other wore pants tighter than those of any other girl I have ever seen. Mr. Spandex Jeans, was jumping ALL over the stage with Mr. Ataris-Voice.

I am very fond of Allie, as she was super cute in her white blouse-dress and yellow flats and seemed to be the youngest member of Ra Ra Riot. She was beautiful.

Anyway, Ra Ra Riot put on a feel-good show, and that's what they are - an innocent, fun band, nothing much more.

Their album debuts July 10th.

Bravo Bravado!

On Repeat:

After watching The Birdcage and getting into the gist of South Miami life and music in the early 90's, I got even more into synth pop and freestyle. That is how I stumbled upon this wonderful Melbourne DJ, Ben Plant, better known as Miami Horror.

Miami Horror is definitely influenced by Daft Punk and Gloria Estefan's "Congo", and falls into the pool of the many 80's revival bands. Don't roll your eyes; Miami Horror, though almost purely instrumental, will make you wanna whip out your neon bikini and roller-blades to send you wiggling your hips and clapping your hands down a boardwalk. The songs are never boring and the hard-hitting bass, pumping with the vibrating electro-keyboard chords and ever-changing pitch will surely have you playing these songs on repeat.

I'm eagerly anticipating Plant's first album, Bravado, soon to be released.

MP3: Midnight Juggernauts - Road to Recovery (Miami Horror Remix)
MP3: Miami Horror - Don't Be On With Her

Vermont: June 2007

I've been looking forward to this trip ever since the semester ended.

First of all, hanging out with Nicky after a whole month of being separated was absolutely necessary.

Being in the city so much got me to a point where all the noise, pollution, people, tall buildings and man-made structures started to suffocate. For some reason I was just tired of everything and spending time in Vermont was the perfect remedy for my feeling unsatisfied and tired.

Landed in Burlington, where Nicky picked me up and we went to have the BEST sandwich ever, drove past the fields and farms and trees and a dead skunk to this:

Typical.

I loved it.

During this vacation I also got to meet the cutest babies ever and fell in love with Demetrius, who I miss terribly already.

Went strawberry picking with Chrissy, ate strawberries for hours because they were the sooooo deliciously delicious. Oh my goodness we had so many strawberries.

We also had two creamies that day. For those of you unfamiliar with the best maple soft-serve ice cream, you're missing out.

Oohhhmuhgawdsomuchfoood.


Went to a party where we all got drunk playing checkers and jumped on a wet trampoline.




Went to Wayside Diner the next morning where I was so hungover I couldn't eat breakfast. Barghhh.

But Chrissy took the best pictures ever.

Then went exploring in Nicky's "backyard" where we made a documentary about survival in the forest.

Hiked up and down through the forest; it was crazy! I almost died trying to keep up.

























Laid on the Statehouse Lawn for some time, hysterical laughing over immature matters with the best. Amazing.

Also sat at a bonfire in Nicky's backyard with her family, watching the smoke whirl in question marks and joking about how that was the vision of our futures.

Suggested creating a crop circle garden in the shape of a question mark or exclamation point.

Did a lot of other things but I just can't put into words how much I've thought about throughout the trip. I risk sounding like the biggest loser ever in saying that being in the country/mountain-side brought me to a level of higher awareness. There wasn't a single moment when I thought about wanting my iPod. Everything is so beautiful and untouched and pure.

A bajillion thanks to the Best Ever for everything.

Jetlagged

Vermont is wonderfully beautiful. So much grass, so many trees, so much sky. So many honest people because I lost my phone (again) and a nice security guard called home to let my sister know where it was (<3).>

Pretentious Phrase of the Week

In describing a Kandinsky painting where several planes seem to intersect each other, Professor Trudie Grace said,

"It's a cacophony of direction."

Go Go Smear the Poison Ivy, Make Your Crooked Hands Holy

My DSL connection has been sucking so bad lately. Hence the lack of updates.

I've also landed a job at a silk-screening lab in the Upper West Side as an assistant. Job description: doing all the odd jobs around the lab, answering the phone every 2 seconds and returning e-mails every 7 seconds. The lab is overloaded with orders right now so it's a really busy place but it makes the time fly. The neighborhood is of course beautiful and we're right on Amsterdam and near Central Park; summertime just makes sitting at one of the sunny sidewalk cafes even more great. The guys (I'm the only girl there) are all really sweet and down-to-earth so it's all right. The only problem is I'm working full-time there so it's draining in so many ways.

Anyway, next Wednesday I'm flying to Vermont to visit the best lil' boy, Nicky. We'll reunite for a few days and be lil' boys together. It's also about time to get the out of QWEENZ (pft, when is it NOT time to get away from Queens?). Forests and fields and good times make for a refreshing, much-needed mini-vacation.

On Repeat:
Icelanders Múm (!!!) has announced their fourth album to be released September 25th, titled Go Go Smear the Poison Ivy, Make Your Crooked Hands Holy. CAN'T WAIT based on this track for download. Dancing Behind My Eyelids is an empowering track of electronic beeps and bumps. Indecipherable sung lyrics come halfway through the track of "dancing" and "horizons" but are, for the most part, hauntingly nostalgic in a magical way. This is the perfect in-between singing too much and not singing at all, since most of their best work is instrumental. It's entrancing. Go blast this on some good headphones and listen.


MP3: Mum - Dancing Behind My Eyelids

Those Germans

Around the World

Watched "Hard Candy" last night, and I have several problems with the movie:
-Why is she such a psycho!?
-Sandra Oh was absolutely irritating in this movie
-Ellen Page's character was perhaps the most annoying and unlikeable character in the history of all the movies I've ever watched.
-I honestly don't see the problem with Patrick Wilson fondling me.
Don't watch it.

On a lighter, more happier note:
I can never get sick of this video.

Daft Punk - Around the World

Battles with Mirrors

Battles is Animal Collective from the future. Using all kinds of electronic effects, lead singer Tyondal Braxton's voice is manipulated to sound like a small choir of evil cyborg children. Ian Willians and Dave Konopka play their bad-ass guitar and bass chords, with an almost droned out keyboard to add to the effect that you're at rockin' concert for robots where a spiritual event will follow a moshpit.

Though the drums are, at times, a little dominating, Battles' new album "Mirrored" is definitely worth listening to, especially if you fancy experimental music.

They'll be playing at the Southstreet Seaport Festival on August 31st.

Battles - Atlas

Life and Pictorals

Today I got training-attacked by the Training Manager at Crunch. His name is Antonio and he's black and 38 and good-looking. His exercises involved his legs between mine and vice versa. Could this be a developing case of jungle fever? Kidding. He was really good and I have an actual session with him on Friday.

Apparently I have poor posture and terrible balance and it's making me look fatter/shorter than I really am. I believe it.

Found some Yo Majesty/CSS photos from the other night:
Carolina Parra is still on my mind.