Category: Kunst, Art & Expressery

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Top 2009 Music

Here’s my top 2009 music, presented in 3 categories (descending order):

Cat1: Superb – Surprising – Strong – Sparkling

1. I’ve put Editors at #1 with In This Light And On This Evening, thanks to the Cuttings II bonus CD. That’s what avoided an ex aequo with Starsailor. Going beyond this evening into This Night. Increased experiments of multi-layered electronic rock.

2. Starsailor‘s All the plans just happens to be a true masterpiece that combines, reinforces and pushes all that they’ve done before to a higher… plan… and beyond. The Deluxe acoustic bonus shows the melodic strength to their songs. My second best #1.

Cat2: Surprising – Strong – Sparkling

Some artists caught my interest and took me by surprise:

3. Bat for Lashes highlighted the shadows of Two Suns with her ethereal tunes of enlightened darkness.

4. Florence + The Machine produced an incredible debut that rages as an auditive storm pulling out the air of our Lungs.

5. The Horrors have painted a bunch of wild and dark songs in Primary Colours outgrowing ancient influences.

Cat3: Surprising – Strong or Sparkling

Familiar faces, sometimes hiding behind new masks, have given evidence of their musical qualities without necessarily transcending it.

  • Julian Plenti showed up saying he Is… Skyscraper. Although his voice says Paul Banks, his musical incarnation says differently.
  • Axl Peleman heeft ons een prachtig tweede plaatje in zijn sappig Aantwaarps In ‘t Gezicht gesmeten.
  • Peter Doherty showed a great song writer side to his talents on the fabulous Grace/Wastelands.
  • Brett Anderson has over merely 3 solo albums evolved to an extraordinary artist, with Slow Attack to prove that he definitely no longer needs unlimited electricity to be very powerful.

Cat4: Here to stay

Familiar names that have produced decent work, but had no desire to look for groundbreaking experiences:

Jerry Fish and the Mudbug Club – The Beautiful Untrue / Laïs & Simon Lenski – Laïs Lenski / Sting – If on a winter’s night / Arctic Monkeys – Humbug / Franz Ferdinand – Tonight / Morrissey – Years of Refusal / Rammstein – Liebe ist für Alle da

Cat5: Out of competition

  • Cecilia Bartoli gave new life to great compositions from the Napolitan School of castrati on Sacrificium
  • British Sea Power gave new life to the old life of a Man of Aran
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Plastic Image (very unlimited)

Once upon a time I used to drive my parents (especially my father) totally mad with the existentialist screaming and the early experimentalist patterns of musical chaos of John Lydon and his (in)famous Public Image Ltd (PiL).

My recently purchased Plastic Box compilation truly shows all incarnations of this influential, staggering, daring, confronting and adventurous band. The perfect introduction with enough tasty special stuff (mixes, limited editions and live tracks) for the connoisseur.

Rotten’s personal post-punk Public Image anthem starts off the journey into the psychotic, provocative, multiwoven soundscapes of First Issue and subsequent albums. Groundbreaking. Dragged into a world of drums, dub and percussion based madness to be fast forwarded into -what seems- danceable rock music against a poptoned horizon. Down the charts with it. The genius of Cassette / Album / Compact Disc. End up sweating on hard Happy (?) rocking energy, culminating in the live assaults (at the BBC) of That What Is Not …joyful.

Cynical to date. Unlimited. Striking. But conventional? NEVER. Mind.

I guess mr. Lydon himself wasn’t too enthusiast about this record company spawned PVC box because the booklet is a mashup of some of his public quotes, intended to look like he wrote a full text.

Just a little example of Lydon’s sense for adventure:

Continue reading Plastic Image (very unlimited)

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Jigsawmentallama

A character. Dublin roads. Obsession. Meeting people. Sort of… insane. Slightly touched. Could be a Virgin Prune, but is… Jigsawmentallama. Inspiration for a song that was included on the Over The Rainbow album, originally a Virgin Prunes ‘compilation of rarities’ of 1981-1983.

Strongman and Mary released it as Artfuck on New Rose, but Gavin Friday turned back to its original title with the 2004 re-issue of the complete catalogue.

The 1983 intent was to show the band beyond If I Die, I Die… and Hérésie. The 2004 edition applies that vision to their complete existence. It officially says 1981-1984, but it includes recordings from preparing The Moon Looked Down And Laughed.

Down The Memory Lane left out (it does belong uniquely on Hérésie). Just A Lovesong kind of switched with White History Book (The Moon…).
The vibe-akimbo mix of Pagan Love Song added (before on the 1993 EP). The LP version of Love Lasts Forever finally marked as a rarity. The Faculties Of A Broken Heart included (got it originally on 45″). And despite not re-issuing The Hidden Lie (what I firmly regret) Gavin did add Blues Song from the album as a… hidden track. Speaking of forbidden fruits.

Given its new use (for The Moon…) the cover artwork was replaced with blue If I Die images. It fits because of the omnipresence of The Beautifull House.

YEO5CD is more than an expanded version of Over The Rainbow. It feels more essential. And it adds the last jigsaw pieces to the beautifull and gigantic Virgin Prunes puzzle.

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Metal plating for industrial body

Das erste Song von Rammstein an ihre neuesten CD Liebe Ist Für Alle Da ist eine richtige Hymne. Klar: eine Rückkehr muss gefeiert wurden.

Dieser Song, Rammlied, ist nicht nür eine Metapher für dieser Album aber gleich für Rammstein sofort. Es fängt an mit einige schwere metallische Riffs, offensichtlich Klischee. Obschon es sehr schnell klar wird dass Rammstein das Genre mit Vorbedacht über-seriös nehmen wodurch sie es gleichzeitig übersteigen. Das Rammlied entartet weiter in eine Metal Oper mit symphonische Atmosphären, wie patentiert von Faith No More.

Humor war der Grund auf wem ich sie seit der frühere Rosenrot Rammstein meine Liebe schon erklärte. Mariachi trompeten. Fremdsprachen (Spanisch, Französisch). Und während sie immer noch kräftig festhalten an die deutsche Sprache, können sie Englisch (wie in Pussy) auch wie eine fremde Sprache bestätigen (nicht slecht für eine weltweit renommierte Rockband).

Ihre Artwork is auch wieder so komplet (Hülle, clips, site). Barock, horror, clair-obscur ob Helldunkel, neo-romantik, Freaks. Geht gut zusammen mit den sehr ausdrückliche Gesangweise. Orgasmus.

Ein Tier das noch nicht sterben muss.

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Slow Attack, Slow Conquest

The new Brett Anderson album is rightfully called Slow Attack. Once it would have been hard to imagine that this hyperactive Suede frontman would ever produce such slow, introspective chamber music. But all together it has been a natural evolution over his (3 by now) solo albums. And the impressive Union Chapel (live) recordings.

The album shows, musically as in its photography, the shadows and the vague silhouette of a former rock star. Hidden face. Eyes that have seen it all. A (still) large voice no longer needs an electrical storm of guitars and attitude to strike down listeners and audience. A piano, a cello and related humble instrumentation. Lightning still. On a long and slow night, when the cold is shut outside by his warming tunes. Fireplace joy. Especially on a winter’s night. The beauty of frozen stillness.

He was in my Top 2007 (his self-titled ‘debut’) and Top 2008 (Wilderness). A little voice in me says he will appear in my Top 2009…

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Ulakanakulot

I remember. Look forward. Backwards. A day. Never to come. Looked for the words of a singer in a band. Lyrics with the 1991 If I Die, I Die… CD. Crazy. Lost the words. Bought the CD in 1998 during our honeymoon in… Ireland.

But it took until 2004 for Gavin Friday to restore the real grandeur of this Virgin Prunes master piece. And he even managed to reinforce the original brown and blue parts.
The sides I always saw as the spiritual and the earth side.

The brown side is extended with Dave-ID Is Dead, following Pagan Love Song, before Fàdo (formerly unknown to me) melancholically ends it. I didn’t know Dave-ID was dead before the 1993 ‘Pagan Love Song’ EP (‘Tormentallama’ and ‘Vibeakimbo’ mixes and my beloved Lovelornalimbo).

Chance Of A Lifetime went from black to blue (originally on my The Faculties of A Broken Heart 45″), making way for Yeo (formerly unknown to me) to close side and album. The recurring piano tunes of Fàdo and Yeo seem subtle hints at the re-gained balance of the album. 2 x 7 = 14 and the re-issues are YEO1 to YEO5

The loss of the original cover picture is compensated by the enhanced booklet. Immersed in the spiritual and earth feels.
Never before released pictures. Ghosts. Forest people. Another tribal side of the band (remember the on-stage pigheads and Pig Children imagery). Colin Newman granted a revenge with the ‘director’s cut’ of Baby Turns Blue.

Whatever happened to Emancipation Act 72/3/4?
Did it die with its sole signatory in 1996?


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ONgekelderd en NOg dicht

{
’t matig machtige is nooit genoeg te doen
aan het doel        allicht        middelmatig
tot licht
vertier
van ’t nut
gesteld

Een woord verdicht tot gedicht
is van tijd ontboeid          daar
waar 1 minuut niet denken moet
illuster  slechts  behouden  moet
sub in ratio van illusie en niet echt
ont ____________________hecht

de sommatie van een cliché en een dag is niets
middelmachtigheid is onvoldoende middelmatig
}

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Peter knows which way to go

Peter knows which way to go. And not only because his spaceship knows.

On his personal, newly established, music label Huvolla Peter Murphy has been releasing some Secret Covers, named after his latest concert tour. It started with the John Lennon classic Instant Karma, that was also used in a (JP Morgan) commercial.

Then came David Bowie’s Space Oddity. Peter added his special oriental feel; the one in which his CD Dust was already… covered. The distinct electric violin of Hugh Marsh re-appearing after Dust and Peter’s -incredible- live album Alive (Just For Love).

Next, Peter released the live and cracklin recording (with his band) of Joy Division’s Transmission, performed at the Highline Ballroom (NYC) in July 2009. I remember Bauhaus playing “Isolation” live during their last tour (ever), with Peter already copying some of Ian Curtis’ typical gestures.

Both as solo artist as with Bauhaus, Peter has performed on a number of occasions with Nine Inch Nails. He performed Hurt with Trent Reznor at a radio (FM live) session. I downloaded that one for free. Peter now released it as secret cover #4. And I bought it. Being a collector-fan and to support Peter.

Peter Murphy is a remarkable voice in today’s musical landscape, a position he rightfully gained by being an expressive, committed and original artist. Not because he’s god. Because there is no god.    But god.

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Definition of… User Stories

Over various projects I have applied a set of Agile practices from eXtreme Programming and Scrum. Adding personal insights to specifically handle fixed price (-negotiable scope) projects resulted in my My.Fragility framework.

The framework includes a Product Backlog Estimation model, for which the main estimation process steps were highlighted as part of my Definition Of Agile Planning. Furthermore does the model at least imply an understanding of my definition of a User Story:

A User Story describes a feature from an end-user perspective. It is independent of software layers or parts of the project

A User Story can be explained as an essential Use Case

A User Story should be INVEST to be ready for development

  • Independent: User Stories have as little interdependence as possible. Resolve it by putting related Stories in the same Sprint
  • Negotiable: a User Story is an invitation to discuss implementation. The best design and code result from communication!
  • Valuable: a User Story represents effective business value for an end-user
  • Estimatable: the size and knowledge on a User Story is sufficient to reliably estimate the Story
  • Small: a User Story is small enough to be estimated, developed and tested. It is comfortably realizable in one Sprint
  • Testable: a User Story has a clear result that can be tested
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Lovelornalimbo

1989. A man. Boy. No real man (not like fathers). Locked. Away. Stares. A river. Cries. A river. Need to sleep. Love lost. A fool romantic. Tortured heart. Could have been so good… for you. Eyes that see the world. I have no words. The moon looked down.      And laughed.

2004. Gavin Friday finally succeeds in re-releasing, re-arranging, extending and re-shuffling the complete Virgin Prunes back catalog.

The Moon Looked Down And Laughed got new artwork and Just A Lovesong, the most honest lovesong ever (previously only a ‘rarity’ on Over The Rainbow). Courtesy of Dave-ID and Dave Ball. True Life Story remained with its crazy growling in Russian by Mary’s girlfriend (not on LP but on the New Rose CD). White History Book deleted (previously on the B-side of my “Don’t Look Back”-EP and the New Rose CD).

Preferring Lovelornalimbo (previously on my Our Love Will Last Forever Untill It Dies-EP only) over Love Lasts Forever ultimately removes a slick feeling of compromise. Away with the slightest doubt if -6 years after the Red Nettle statement- they had secretly tried to be ‘the new pop sound of Ireland‘ after all. Sir Poddington beheaded as a treacherous knight.

2009. Still love it! Gav settled things. No sacrilege. No harm done. But I still feel that The Hidden Lie is worthwhile… but Gavin doesn’t. Who am i?