Sunday, March 28, 2010

Such Great Heights - The Postal Service




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Everything looks perfect from far away...

This might be my favourite love song ever. I first heard The Postal Service in about 2005 when I got back from a trip travelling around Central America. I was immediately seduced by the beautiful lyrics 'I'm thinking it's a sign/ That the freckles in our eyes/ Are mirror images/ And when we kiss they're perfectly aligned' and the blips and pops of the keyboard which eases us into and back out of a well crafted electropop song. The band were a unity of Ben Gibbard (Death Cab For Cutie) and Jimmy Tamborello (Dntel, James Figurine)

I can remember hearing their cover of Phil Collins's Against All Odds when I was dribbling into my breakfast in a canteen tent for Workers Beer at Glastonbury 2007. It was named as one of the top 100 covers in The New York Post.

The photo was taken from out of my plane window on my way back from Iceland, but it's actually Scotland underneath that blanket of snow.

Saturday, March 27, 2010

Lightworks - Astrobotnia



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This track actually always reminds me of the Whistler painting The Falling Rocket which I saw at an exhibition in The Tate Britain about 5 years ago. It seemed relevant for today because I have just observed Earth Hour. It was very tranquil inside the house because I decided to switch everything off. I have quite a noisy house - with the hum of the fridge and the pc and the rattling flatulence of the Saniflow system - so it was a relief to be at peace; as the Earth was, with all of those lights off.

And it was by the light of several candles that I sat down and wrote the first of many letters I won't send. Writing in the dark, with no sound was a very cathartic experience and one I hope to repeat as regularly as is possible.

I first came acrossAstrobotnia a.k.a. Ovuca through @Innit on Blip.fm and have listened to various projects he has worked on since. I'm from Cornwall, home of Aphex Twin and Luke Vibert who have both been associated with the Warp label and Aphex's label Rephlex. Where Aleksi Perälä's music can be found. To buy Astrobotnia albums click here or check the above links to appropriate websites.

Wednesday, March 24, 2010

Money - Pink Floyd



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Money, so they say, is the root of all evil today

It's budget day so this seems an obvious one.

This morning I got a cheque I've been waiting for for some time. I've felt like Adrian Mole waiting for the Giro; checking the post obsessively. And now I have it. And nothing's changed. The things that matter still matter. And it's not with all the money in the world I can change the things in the past. I can use it to pay for therapy to make them easier.

What I really wanted to see on my doormat wasn't there.


This was taken at Banksy's awesome exhibition last year; in which he took over the Bristol Museum. He said "This is the first show I've ever done where taxpayers' money is being used to hang my pictures up rather than scrape them off." here. I'm quite excited about when the film: Exit Through The Gift Shop comes to Cornwall.

I'm a massive fan of Pink Floyd. You couldn't grow up in the household I did and get away with not being. I tried when I was a young teen - just to be contraversial - but as I got older I appreciated their originality and the lyrical diversity between the different writers. Just don't get me started on the Gilmour vs. Taylor debate when I've had one too many Old Rosies

Unless you were born on another planet - or perhaps fairly recently - you will already know this track comes from Dark Side of the Moon. If you've got a spare 45 mins the best experiment on the internet is watching the mash up of this album with The Wizard of Oz and trying to find the similarities. Loads of blog posts discuss this further or give you a helping hand. Like this one.

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

Northern Sky - Nick Drake




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I never felt emotion in the palm of my hand

Today would have been my anniversary. I can remember my Mum saying this every December, and I didn't get it when I was young. Well, there you said it; 'would have' kind of indicates not anymore. Now I see it's not that easy to forget. This picture exemplifies my metaphorical Northern Sky that needs some brightening.

This was taken in Stockholm, which is quite North of where my heart is today. It's from Nick Drake's 1970 album Bryter Later and contains some of the magic sparkles I associate with Fever Ray and other Scandanavian artists who seems to insert some light into their dark songs, reminiscent of Northern winter skies.

Monday, March 22, 2010

Lanterns on the Lake - Cello Song



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This is another one where the photo matches the band name rather than the song. The 'mood' of the track, with its dreamy keys and looming cello, mimics the mood of the photo. I've been spending my time this week trying to fit some poetry to some cello for a project I'm working on. Serialised snippets of my long poem can be found at Air Dancing. I'm hoping some of this will fit well with Kath Williams's playing. Exciting times where words are concerned.

Lanterns on the Lake are from Newcastle, but the haunting, iceburg pace of their songs echoes that of Sigur Rós or other Icelandic lovelies Múm. The band are still relatively new, but they are touring lots of festivals this summer. More information can be found on their Twitter page.

Thursday, March 18, 2010

Universe and You - KT Tunstall



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I had this in my head when I was writing a poem about cosmology and black holes which you can Read Here. This is from KT Tunstall's Acoustic Extravaganza which takes me back to summers past and lying on a blanket outside looking at the stars. The photo is from Iceland again, where the stars were fantastically clear and I saw the Northern Lights or Aurora Borealis. Unfortunately I was not equipped with a sophisticated enough camera to do any starscapes justice, much less the Northern Lights, but seeing them move was an ethereal experience that led in some ways to the production of a whole set of poems I've yet to blog at Air Dancing.

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Scattered Leaves - The Be Good Tanyas




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'Scattered leaves don't lie/ Aw' now baby, baby, quit your cryin'/Cause everything that ever mattered,/ scit-scat scattered/ Like every love word you heard'.

I'm listening to Hello Love, The Be Good Tanyas' third album pretty much on repeat at the moment. Aside from their beautiful, fragile interpretation of Prince's 1984 classic When Doves Cry, this is proving to be a favourite on the album. This photo was taken at Kennall Vale woods; an old Gunpowder works near Falmouth. This place carries many bittersweet memories for me, but like the song says 'I'm here to tell you, honey,/ what's done is done./ Cause I've been tamed by the wind and the rain/ I ain't going back, no I ain't going back again'. At least not to the bad times. I dare say I'll go to Kennall Vale again pretty soon though!

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Springtime Epiphany - Chris Clark



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Warp's Chris Clark leading me to a springtime epiphany today. I've been eating too much wheat and drinking too much red wine so my springtime cleanup starts now. As long as I have good coffee and poetry things are looking good and I'm planning a trip away in Easter, but I haven't decided where to go yet which excites me. I read this blog earlier, which reminded me there are things I sometimes take for granted too much, and that writing is my friend, my escape and my passion so it will see me through. I'm working on some new poems, which may appear over this side.

Monday, March 15, 2010

Empty - Ray LaMontagne



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'Of these cutthroat busted sunsets, these cold and damp white mornings I have grown weary'.

First, to any that don't know it I should explain why 'Empty' for a song about a beautiful Cornish sunset? And the link is more tenuous than some of the more obvious photo/mp3 choices, but it is solely to pay homage to LaMontagne's lyrical poetry. The above line is finely crafted, a fine example of the imagery used throughout the lyrics of LaMontagne's largely solo album 'Til the Sun Turns Black'. itunes

In no previous post have I included someone else's full lyrics, but this reads so beautifully and explains the photo using words superior to any I could try to shape.

She lifts her skirt up to her knees
walks through the garden rows
with her bare feet laughing.

I never learned to count my blessings
I choose instead to dwell
in my disasters.

I walk on down the hill
through grass grown tall
and brown and still
it's hard somehow
to let go of my pain.

On past the busted back
of that old and rusted Cadillac
that sinks into this field
collecting rain.

Will I always feel this way?
So empty,
so estranged?

Of these cut throat busted sunsets,
these cold and damp white mornings,
I have grown weary.

If through my cracked and dusty
dime store lips
I spoke these words out loud
would no one hear me?

Lay your blouse across the chair,
let fall the flowers
from your hair
and kiss me
with that country mouth
so plain.

Outside, the rain is tapping
on the leaves.
To me it sounds like
they're applauding us
the quiet love
we've made.

Will it always feel this way
so empty
so estranged?

well I looked my demons in the eyes
lay bare my chest
said do your best
to destroy me.

I've been to hell and back
so many times
I must admit
you kinda bore me.

There's a lot of things
that can kill a man
there's a lot of ways
to die.
Yes, and some already did
and walk beside me.

There's a lot of things
I don't understand,
like why so many people lie.
It's the hurt I hide that fuels
the fire inside me.

Will I always feel this way
so empty
so estranged?

Sunday, March 14, 2010

Cherry Blossom Girl - Air



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Beautiful French electro from Air, conjuring the pirouetting flutter of cherry blossoms making their way to the ground. It's getting warmer and Falmouth's starting to show off its spring colours.

Saturday, March 13, 2010

Always Away - Boat Club



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This picture was taken in Stockholm around this time last year. Boat Club are actually from Göteborg on the West coast of Sweden, rather than the East, but it is the band title rather than the song which made me match this image with the track. I have come to notice these characteristics of Scandanavian music such as the sparkles of light infused throughout Always Away. I can remember on this day seeing frozen rivers with tiny peaks frozen on top, which had always been a dream of mine.

Friday, March 12, 2010

Nightlife - Bonobo feat. Bajka



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This picture was taken on my only EVER package holiday in Turkey. It was a stunning place by day and night. I was particularly enamoured with the town of Gümüşlük, read here , which had the remains of an ancient village called Myndos underwater. It was possible to walk out to a small island inhabited only by rabbits. On top of the hill here was a wishing tree on which we tied ribbons and cast our wishes out to sea. Mine's not yet come true, but I guess good thngs come to those who wait...

Thursday, March 11, 2010

Meet Me in the Morning - Bob Dylan



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This track from Dylan's finest hour (in my opinion) Blood on the Tracks contains some of my favourite lyrics. 'Look at the sun, sinking like a ship/ Ain't that just like my heart babe?/ When you kiss my lips.' This photo of someone dear to me one morning after a party plays with that line, and the title, for the sun in this case happens to be rising. This is about a 2 minute walk from my house in Falmouth Harbour, UK.

The lyric 'They say the darkest hour/ Happens right before the dawn' also occurs in this track and it is something I try to hold on to in times of darkness.

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

The Dark is Rising - Mercury Rev




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Another song laden with darkness, which calls to mind a recent visit to Iceland. The Northern winter nights were nigh on 20 hours long when I was visiting in December. One morning I rose early so I could see the sun rise over the Blue Lagoon near Reykjavík. As dawn seeped in from the sky it seemed more appropriate to think of the dark rising, rather than the sun as the sun really takes its while.

Sunday, March 7, 2010

Here Before - Fever Ray (Covers Vashti Bunyan)



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I am a huge fan of Fever Ray aka Karin Dreijer Andersson from Swedish duo The Knife. I flew out to Sweden to see her, but had a mix up with venue! I am the world's clumsiest traveller, and am due to fly to The Galápagos Islands this summer. Wish me luck. Anyway, this photo reminds me of a place I dreamt of as a child and when I first came across this place I really had that sense of Déjà vu. Fever Ray's haunting, ethereal vocals bring a darkness reminiscent of a Northern winter night to this song and the two compliment one another.

Saturday, March 6, 2010

River - Joni Mitchell



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Today I am 30 years old! 'I wish I had a river I could skate away on'.

I dreamed of seeing frozen rivers and waves since I first heard about the sea freezing over in St. Petersburg, Russia when I was a kid. On a visit to Sweden last year I managed to snap these frozen white horses on a river.