"Little Talks" - Of Monsters And Men

Imma show you how proud I am

Remember back in the old days when people used to marry within their heritage to keep the bloodlines pure?  I guess you probably don't remember, because you'd be 700 years old now, and dead instead of reading this blog. Anyways, I like those days. I am annoyingly proud of my heritage (hey son, check out all of my foreign tattoos).  I am half Icelandic and half Ukranian.  Don't tell my Baba (Ukranian Grandma), but I might just be a little more proud to be Icelandic.  Come on, really though - even pierogi can't compete with Vikings!

There is nothing more gangster than Vikings, no saga more enchanting than Norse mythology, and nowhere as hauntingly beautiful as Iceland.  That being said, I feel like Iceland is misunderstood and misrepresented (like moi). The only significant media coverage Icelanders ever seem to get is for volcanoes erupting or the Country going bankrupt.  Besides epic glaciers and Huldufolk (Iceland's hidden people), Iceland is becoming known for their music festivals and homegrown talent.  Enter Of Monsters and Men, who gained their first success after winning The Icelandic Music Experiments: Musiktilraunir, a nationwide battle of the bands competition.

Iceland = Epic

My passion and interest in obscure and fantastic music is becoming increasingly more apparent to my friends, and I am so thrilled for your random texts suggesting songs I might be interested in.  The songs are my little treasures, just like you my elskans (my dears).

First thing I Googled - "What the hell does Of Monsters and Men stand for?" Through much creeping I found an article where the band explains, "We like looking up strange stories, stories about monsters and stuff. We're just kind of inspired by the whole weirdness of everything." Fair enough,  I'll take it.

Second thing I Googled - "What the hell is "Little Talks" about?" Now this search produced just over 1 million answers. It was amazing how people could interpret the same song in so many different ways.  From an abusive relationship, to someone going insane. A few people threw the possibility out there that the song might be referring to someone suffering from dementia.

Of Monsters and Men

My Amma (Icelandic Grandma)  suffered from dementia, and the more I read the lyrics the more that theme clicked with me.  I finally found an interview with the band who wrote that the story behind "Little Talks" is "about lovers that have gone away, It's basically about losing someone."  If you've ever known someone diagnosed with dementia the lyrics will speak to you a little bit, "There's an old voice in my head that's holding me back/I tell her that I miss our little talks", "I wish you'd disappear/All that's left is a ghost of you."  And this made me like the song even more, because it reminds me of my Amma now.  Not in a sad way, but in a nice way, like a hand on the shoulder.

What did you think of the song my little blog-bots?  How did you interpet it.

Skal!

Sources:  http://mplayer.pastemagazine.com/issues/week-10/articles#article=/issues/week-10/articles/of-monsters-and-men-icelands-folk-pop-stars





Hey! Hey! Hey!
I don't like walking around this old and empty house
So hold my hand, I"ll walk with you my dear
The stairs creak as I sleep, it's keeping me awake
It's the house telling you to close your eyes

Some days I can't even trust myself
It's killing me to see you this way

'Cause  though the truth may vary
This ship will carry
Our bodies safe to shore

Hey! Hey! Hey!
There's an old voice in my head that's holding me back
I tell her that I miss our little talks
Soon it will all be over, buired with our past
You used to play outside when you were young,
Full of life and full of love.

Some days I feel like I am wrong an I am right
Your mind is playing tricks on you my dear

'Cause  though the truth may vary
This ship will carry
Our bodies safe to shore

Hey!
Don't listen to a word I say
Hey!
They screams all sound the same
Hey!

'Cause  though the truth may vary
This ship will carry
Our bodies safe to shore

You're gone gone gone away
I watched you disappear
All that's left is a ghost of you
Now we're torn torn torn apart
There's nothing we can do
Just let me go, we'll meet again soon

Now wait wait wait for me
Please hang around
I see you when I fall asleep

Hey!
Don't listen to a word I say
Hey!
They screams all sound the same
Hey!

'Cause  though the truth may vary
This ship will carry
Our bodies safe to shore\

Hey!
Don't listen to a word I say
Hey!
They screams all sound the same
Hey!

'Cause  though the truth may vary
This ship will carry
Our bodies safe to shore x 3

Video Games - Lana Del Ray

I was crying over Postsecrets like this

I can't sleep.  I just got back from Hawaii (Woe is me - I know),  and I'm still on "Island Time".  By "Island Time" I mean I'm terribly exhausted but can't fall asleep without hearing the ocean anymore apparently?  Being a Social Media maven I was playing around on my Pinterest.  Perfect site for me as I already creepily save photos I like to folders on my computer to look at when I'm bored.  I posted said photos to Pinterest and now I feel much more productive....  Anyways, I started looking at some of my favourite Postsecrets, got emotional and decided to blog my insomnia out.

Smokeshow Del Ray

Lana Del Ray.  Who is she?  She's the next god damn  Adele. You heard it here first. With all due respect to Adele though, Lana Del Ray is a SMOKESHOW.  I first heard her at Christmas at the suggestion of a music saavy manic cousin, and immediately developed a girl crush (girl crush means I don't want to kiss her but I do want to sit beside her and brush her hair probably or borrow her lipstick).  

Lana Del Ray is exactly how I like my women.  A babe.  She's sultry and smoky without being a skank.  Her song and her voice have a depth and resonance that so many pop tart singers today lack.

Love yourself first Gangsta

"Video Games" may just be one of my favorite songs.  It's more of a "real" love song, and I like those best.   At only 25 years old the kind of love Del Rey sings about is the kind of raw and stupid love everyone experiences once in their life.  My favorite lines, "Heaven is a place on earth with you", "It's better than I ever even knew." You fall madly in love with someone and turn a blind eye to all of their flaws. You'll do anything to make them happy, "Tell me all the things you want to do, I heard that you like the bad girls Honey, is that true?" In the song she appears to be both intoxicated with her guy, and in the literal sense.  Del Ray was quoted in an interview with The Observer as saying;

"I just put that song online a few months ago because it was my favorite.  To be honest, it wasn't going to be the single but people have really responded to it.  I get very sad when I play that song. I still cry sometimes when I sing it."

Everybody's guilty of loving someone so unconditionally that you compromise a part of yourself. That unconditional, dreamy, teenage-type love will give you the biggest emotional highs and lows of your life.  Then one day you wake up, grow up and step up and realize that the most important person in your life is you.
  

"I Wish I Was The Moon" - Neko Case

Sting uses Tantric Sex to relieve stress

Wow I've been out of the loop for awhile now hey?  This is the longest I've gone between blogs since my blog first came to be.  In many ways I find blogging therapeutic. Yes, there are some of us freaks out there that actually ENJOY writing.  It de-stresses us in the same way chocolate, yoga or Tantric sex might work for other people (although I wouldn't say no to the latter either).



When I look back at my epic blogging career, I can directly correlate the pattern of my blogs with the events in my life. There was a time when I needed to blog weekly, then monthly, and now it's to a point where sometimes it's even longer than that. I find I need to blog less and less,  but don't worry my pretty little followers, it's not for lack of music, because I have plenty of that to come.


I first heard "I Wish I Was The Moon" on, (surprise, surprise) my favourite vampire porn - True Blood.  The best way to describe this song is "haunting".  It has a very dated and lonely feel to it.   Now my Neighbour has been harping on me for listening to too many "depressing" songs, but I think that the most powerful emotions are listed in this order - sadness, anger, happiness.  The kind of heartache and pain that goes into a sad song can't even touch one that's been written with a smile.

Neko Case

You might recognize Neko from her contributions to The New Pornographers.  There wasn't much info available about this song but I found the below explanation on a song forum.  


"She said that this song was written about her father whom she described as a "sad and lonely man" who hated his life and let them know about it every day.  Her Mother and Father emigrated from the Ukraine, when it was still part of the Communist Soviet Union.  the Line "God bless me, I'm a free man" refers to that, but they were very poor which us the line "with nowhere free to go".  He worked for the US Air Force which meant moving around a lot and explains why they wound up in Tacoma, Washington as there is an Air Force Base There"







Chimney falls and lovers blaze
Thought that I was young
No I've freezing hands and bloodless veins
As numb as I've become
I'm so tired, I wish I was the moon tonight


Last night I dreamt I've forgotten my name
'Cause I sold my soul
But I woke just the same
I'm so lonely, I wish I was the moon tonight

God bless me I'm a free man
With no place free to go
Paralyzed and collared tight
No pills for what I fear
This is crazy, I wish I was the moon tonight


Chimney falls and lovers blaze
Thought that I was young
Now I've freezing hands and bloodless veins
As numb as I've become
I'm so tired, I wish I was the moon tonight


How will you know if you've found me at last
'Cause I'll be the one, be the one, be the one
With my heart in my lap
I'm so tired
I'm so tired
and I wish I was the moon...


I'm so tired
I'm so tired
And I wish I was the moon tonight.

"One Great City" (I Hate Winnipeg) - The Weakerthans

I'm proud to say I live in Winnipeg. I'm not from here originally, I voluntarily made the choice to move here.I have learned that Winnipeg is known for two main things;

Welcome Home Winnipeg Jets

1. Being ridiculously cold (Hence Winterpeg)
2.Losing the Winnipeg Jets.

Slowly but surely, people's perspective on Winnipeg is shifting.  Like "The Little Engine That Could", Winnipeg is quietly doing amazing things.  From our brand new airport, world class Polar Bear facility at Assiniboine Park, IKEA (oh yes), to the Museum for Human Rights. The entire world watched us this summer as after 14 years we welcomed home our beloved Winnipeg Jets. But Winnipeg doesn't really talk about the great things that we're doing, and that - is what many say to be our biggest fault.

Canadian Museum for Human Rights

Winnipeg is like the underdog  that was picked on in High School. We were told we weren't good enough, that we could never be successful.  Sometimes the challenge to prove people wrong is all it takes to persevere.  They told us we'd never get the Jets back, that Winnipeg, our arena , and our ticket sales potential were too small.  The entire 2011-2012 season of NHL tickets sold out. In 17 minutes ! While there may be things that Winnipeg doesn't have, there is one very important thing that we do have,  community.

I've heard the expression that it's not ideal to "live in Winnipeg", but it's a great thing to be "from Winnipeg".  Good people come from Winnipeg. Our license plates say "Friendly Manitoba", come on now. We can't make that shit up.  We have lakes, beaches and endless sky. We don't have smog, traffic jams or concrete jungles. No matter where in the world "Peggers" end up, they'll always call Winnipeg home.

Homegrown Winnipeg Boys - The Weakerthans

At first listen "One Great City", seems to be about, well - hating Winnipeg, but in all actuality it's a tribute, to the hometown of The Weakerthans.  While the song speaks specifically about the Peg, it's an ode to everyone's hometown and the love/hate relationship that they have with it.  In a blog my boss showed me, the headline is - Winnipeg Love Hate - "The most beautiful, most repulsive city in the world." Could not have said it better myself



Late afternoon, another day is nearly done
A darker grey is breaking through a lighter one
A thousand sharpened elbows in the underground
That hollow hurried sound, feet on polished floor
And in the dollar store, the clerk is closing up
And counting loonies trying not to say

I hate Winnipeg
[ Lyrics from: http://www.lyricsmode.com/lyrics/w/weakerthans/one_great_city.html ]
The driver checks the mirror seven minutes late
The crowded riders' restlessness enunciates
The Guess Who sucked, the Jets were lousy anyway
The same route everyday
And in the turning lane
Someone's stalled again
He's talking to himself
And hears the price of gas repeat his phrase

I hate Winnipeg

And up above us all
Leaning into sky
Our golden business boy
Will watch the North End die
And sing, I love this town
Then let his arcing wrecking ball proclaim

I
Hate
Winnipeg

"Small Town Streets" - Zachary Lucky

When I grow up I want to be
just like Penny Lane...

Gawd I feel guilty.  So guilty. This blog has become a forgotten house plant, slowly wilting, in the corner of the room.  Despite my recent negligence I promise never to let this blog die. Being able to share my taste in music with people all over the world is an amazing feeling.  I used to daydream about being a Penny Lane-esque kind of broad that travels around the world scouting out bands and penning articles for Rolling Stone Magazine. The closest I've come to this thus far, is writing my blog and picking up local musicians.  C'est la vie - I'll take what I can get.

This song came to me quite unexpectantly through my little cousin.  The weird part is that I had no idea he was my cousin until two years ago when my brother started bringing him around (baby bro has a nasty habit of bringing home strays). We soon discovered him as one of our own, and any talk of marrying him off to various other cousins stopped (mostly).

One day the cousin came into work, thrilled to announce that he and his buddy had started a small production company - Prairie City Sound.  Essentially they shoot video of local/touring bands doing an acoustic set in a location of their choice in Winnipeg or the surrounding area. I liked the concept enough and I agreed to watch their first video.  An acoustic set tends to speak volumes about an artist's worth and talent.

Zachary Lucky, a Saskatchewan born folk artist was in Gimli, Manitoba for the Icelandic Festival this August, and the boys were lucky enough to shoot some footage of this bear cub of a guy. I found very little info on Zachary himself, save for a couple positive reviews and a modest bio by Lucky himself

"My name is Zachary Lucky, and I was born and raised in Saskatoon, SK.  I'm a singer of songs - hopefully I can come sing some songs for you at some point in time."

Mr.Lucky

I  noticed Lucky is still unsigned, which is ridiculous, because the talent that this young buck possesses is glaringly obvious.  One of Lucky's most endearing qualities is his guy next door persona. With his gravitation towards plaid and his crooked smile, he reminds me of all the small town boys I grew up with.  He has no shtick or image, and he embodies a type of modesty that can only be homegrown.His songs emanate a maturity and wisdom of someone much older, and much more beaten down than the fresh faced Lucky.  His voice is rich and soothing with gravelly undertones.

I couldn't find the lyrics to "Small Town Streets" anywhere, so I tried my best to decipher them. The song tells the story of what Zachary knows best - small town life.  His lyrics are nostalgic, and his voice so soft at times, that my heart breaks a little when he sings, "Jesus Christ, isn't a pretty sight, Watching the sun go down on all the dreams we had."


Moral of this story:  Check out Zachary Lucky & Prairie City Sound.

Oh rain down on me,

I�ve been walking down the small town streets

Just counting mypennies

Waiting to leave this town in the Spring

This Winter�s been hard on me

I�m sure that you know what I mean

By that bottle of Jim Beam

In the corner (??)

I saw you sitting there

You were lost in the midnight (stare?)

You were looking for the truth

Out in the cold and shallow light

And I heard you were leaving town

I could hear it in the way you sound when you�re singingyour blues

Your lost in a (???)

Jesus Christ isn�t a pretty sight

Watching the sun go down on all the dreams we had

"Low Man" - Alberta Cross

Sky, Highway, Prairies and Me

I write most of my blogs while driving.  Not literally, just in my head. I pick a song I want to write about and I play it over and over again until I'm inspired.  I don't do a whole lot of driving, but every week I do make my trek to "The Lake".  "The Lake" is about an hour from doorstep to doorstep and the easiest, breeziest drive I ever have to do.  Almost the entire hour drive is just sky, highway, prairies and me.  During my drive to "The Lake" I do alot of thinking and tend to make most of my decisions.



I originally wanted to blog about "Bonfire" by Alberta Cross, but apparently I'm jumping the gun as the song hasn't even been released to iTunes or CD yet.  I downloaded a whole smack of songs by Alberta Cross, not only because I heard them on "Californication" (and as a rule I like anything related to Hank Moody) but because I really like the wailing, melancholy drawl of the lead singer, Petter Ericson Stakee.

Alberta Cross

In a weird sort of way "Low Man" reminds me of wind, trees, lakes and loneliness.  The lyrics are howled more than sung. He feels "a million miles away" from the woman he loves.  That's the funny part about being with someone.  Sometimes you feel more lonely with them than you ever do alone.  Another funny thing is when you get used to being alone you don't necessarily feel lonely.  It's almost scarier to think of yourself with someone than without.  When you're alone there's no one to disappoint or argue with.  On "Grey's Anatomy" in one of Meredith Grey's endless monologues something she said really made sense.  I filed her monologue like an old librarian, waiting for the right blog post to use it in.

"There's a reason I said I'd be happy alone. It wasn't 'cause I thought I'd be happy alone. It was because I thought if I loved someone and then it fell apart, I might not make it. It's easier to be alone, because what if you learn that you need love and you don't have it? What if you like it and lean on it? What if you shape your life around it and then it falls apart? Can you even survive that kind of pain? Losing love is like organ damage. It's like dying. The only difference is death ends. This? It could go on forever."

Woman, I feel I feel a million miles away
Ocean I've been praying, I've been praying all the way
Woman, I've seen I've seen visions passing away
Ocean I've been trying, I've been trying all the way


Oh, the feeling ain't that strong
And all this fear from carriers along
Oh, low man

How can I be wrong, if the decision's already made
Woman I feel I feel a million miles away
Woman I've been trying, I've been trying all day
How can I be wrong, Oh I feel a million miles away

Oh how feeling ain't that strong
And all this fear from carriers along
Oh, low man
Oh, low man

When this feeling ain't that strong
All this fear from carriers along
Oh, low man 

"The General" - Dispatch

I don't believe in war. I'm a strong believer in making love.. not war.    It blows my mind that in such a sophisticated society with advanced technologies and beliefs, that we still engage in this ancient act. That being said, I understand that when the decision to fight is made we require people to fight. I have nothing but the utmost respect for the men and women that put their lives on the line every day so that we don't have to.  One of my best friends has been overseas with the army twice.  Every time I heard a report of Canadians killed while fighting abroad I scrambled to the newspaper to find the names, praying every time that it wasn't his.  It's crazy to think that this goofy guy who used to let me cut his hair on the deck (bad idea), and sit puking beside me on the front steps after we'd been kicked out of his own house party, could actually be the same guy sent out to the desert to fight for our Country. Thankfully he made it home safe and sound each time, and I look forward to wrecking many more parties with him.

Wrecking Parties

When I heard "The General" by Dispatch it immediately reminded me of him.  Not because he's a general, or a decorated war vet,  but because he's the kind of guy who has always put others before himself.  He is kind and selfless and may very well be the bravest person that I know.

In a narrative way - very reminiscent of folk music, "The General"  tells the story of a "brilliant and battle-torn general" who has a dream that brings him to the realization that he is fighting a war that can never be won, "that this fight is not worth fighting."  He sends his men home, offering to fulfill the job he had sworn to do.  He sacrifices his own chance at a full and happy life for the sake of many.

General Robert E. Lee

Chad Urmston, from Dispatch called "The General", their "anti-war" song. In the book "The Best of the Dispatch", Urmston says;

"Although it was primarily based on the Civil War, the message was not confined to any particular conflict.  The song tells about General Robert E. Lee telling his Confederate army to basically go home and stop fighting" 

there was a decorated general with
a heart of gold, that likened him to
all the stories he told
of past battles, won and lost, and
legends of old a seasoned veteran in
his own time

on the battlefield, he gained
respectful fame with many medals
of bravery and stripes to his name
he grew a beard as soon as he could
to cover the scars on his face
and always urged his men on

but on the eve of a great battle
with the infantry in dream
the old general tossed in his sleep
and wrestled with its meaning
he awoke from the night
just to tell what he had seen
and walked slowly out of his tent

all the men held tall with their
chests in the air, with courage in
their blood and a fire in their stare
it was a grey morning and they all
wondered how they would fare
till the old general told them to go home

[CHORUS:]
He said: I have seen the others
and I have discovered
that this fight is not worth fighting
I have seen their mothers
and I will no other
to follow me where I'm going

So,take a shower, shine your shoes
you got no time to lose
you are young men you must be living
Take a shower, shine your shoes
you got no time to lose
you are young men you must be living
go now you are forgiven

but the men stood fast with their
guns on their shoulders not knowing
what to do with the contradicting orders
the general said he would do his own
duty but would extend it no further
the men could go as they pleased

but not a man moved, their eyes gazed straight ahead
till one by one
they stepped back and not a word was said
and the old general was left with his
own words echoing in his head
he then prepared to fight

[CHORUS]

go now you are forgiven 

"Furr" - Blitzen Trapper

"So I says to Mable I says.."

For someone that used to want to be IN radio, I really don't like/listen to it all that much.  I prefer to have my own radio show, and by radio show I mean my Ipod.  My music saavy neighbor, (I know that guy has got to start paying me for all these plugs) suggested I listen to CBC: Radio 2.  I was like right,  It sounds like something my Grandma might listen to before bed.  I was kind of right, because their late shows consist of alot of old people material and jazz etc., but before/after work they have some solid programming.  They play a beauty of a mix of classics, indie and new music.  Their hosts actually have interesting material.  They don't just talk about getting drunk and their sexual escapades with various radio groupies, they spout endless trivia about musicians, songs and the industry in general.  I effing love it to be honest.

Even Dwight loves Blitzen Trapper

One day in particular they played "Furr" by Blitzen Trapper, and led in with a story about how Rainn Wilson (Dwight, from The Office)  loves this band.  "Furr" sounds like it was written back in the 70's when Dylan and Young reigned supreme. Surprisingly the song was just released back in 2008.  Blitzen Trapper has managed to replicate the feeling and sound of an era that pre-dates them. When I suggested it to a friend he said, "It sounds like Folk Fest".  Well, that pretty much sums up exactly what it sounds like.

What a happy little Werewolf

Blitzen Trapper in the flesh

It has the classic folk song elements; it tells a ridiculous story, has an easygoing harmony and a simple kind of charm.  In a supernatural obsessed society it seems like the thing to do to write about Werewolves.  "Furr" tells the story of a young boy who wanders into the woods and soon realizes when he hears, "the howling of a dog.. a wolf to be exact", that he is a creature, partly of the four legged variety.  What I like best about the song is that Blitzen Trapper takes the werewolf, which by any definition is a terrifying, violent, beast, and humanizes it.  The Werewolf is accepted into the pack and spends his days, "howling endlessly and shrilly at the dawn."  He has a happy, wolf-type of life and then one day meets a girl, falls in love, "settles down on a farm" and "raises children up as gently as you please."  Then as our happy ending, falling in love turns our guy back into a human, "my fur has turned to skin". Don't you worry he hasn't forgot his beastly past, he "still dreams of running carelessly through the snow."  I guarantee that if you DON"T like Twilight you will definitely like this Wolfy, feel-good, fuzzy song.




Yeah, when I was only seventeen
I could hear the angels whispering
So I drove into the woods
And wandered aimlessly about 
Until I heard my mother shouting through the fog
It turned out to be the howling of a dog
Or a wolf, to be exact
The sound sent shivers down my back
But I was drawn into the pack and before long
They allowed me to join in and sing their song
So from the cliffs and highest hills
Yeah, we would gladly get our fill
Howling endlessly and shrilly at the dawn
And I lost the taste for judging right from wrong
For my flesh had turned to fur
Yeah, and my thoughts they surely were
Turned to instinct and obedience to God

You can wear your fur
Like a river on fire
But you'd better be sure
If you're making God a liar
I'm a rattlesnake, babe,
I'm like fuel on fire
So if you're gonna get made
Don't be afraid of what you've learned

On the day that I turned 23
I was curled up underneath a dogwood tree
When suddenly a girl
Her skin the color of a pearl
She wandered aimlessly, but she didn't seem to see
She was listening for the angels just like me
So I stood and looked about
I brushed the leaves off of my snout
And then I heard my mother shouting through the trees
You should have seen that girl go shaky at the knees
So I took her by the arm
We settled down upon a farm
And raised our children up as gently as you please

And now my fur has turned to skin
And I've been quickly ushered in
To a world that, I confess, I do not know
But I still dream of running careless through the snow
Through the howling winds that blow
Across the ancient distant flow
To fill our bodies up like water till we know

You can wear your fur
Like a river on fire
But you'd better be sure
If you're making God a liar
I'm a rattlesnake, babe,
I'm like fuel on fire
So if you're gonna get made
Don't be afraid of what you've learned 

"Kids" - MGMT

I'm not averse to pop music, or "Top 40".  I just find myself drawn to music with a little more depth than a puddle.  That being said, there a few irritatingly catchy pop/dance songs that I find myself downloading and shoulder dropping to in my car on my drive to work.

The drunk people had no idea what this song was

I was at a local bar that I kinda despise a few weeks ago, (said bar coincidentally is also my office - figure that one out), when I heard the song "Kids" by MGMT.  At the time I didn't know what the song was called and was frantically trying to interrogate the drunk people nearest to me on the song's name before it ended.  Someone suggested Arcade Fire, and even though I doubted them I spent the next day trying to Google various Arcade Fire song lyrics.  My next move was to text about five people I know that like music as much as I do. Four out of five shot blanks, but the fifth hit a bullseye and pointed me towards, "Kids" by MGMT.

MGMT

So apparently I'm not the only one who likes MGMT.  Since their signing in 2006 they've received a few Grammy nods, and praise from Last.fm, Rolling Stone, The BBC, and Spin.com.  They are classified on Wikipedia as "Psychedelic Rock Band."  Now I'm not sure anyone has been classified in that genre since Pink Floyd, so good on them.

Oh you're a mean one, Mr. Sarkozy

The song, "Kids" has been used by several media, it's been featured on the 2009 FIFA video game soundtrack, on Gossip Girl & The Vampire Diaries to name a few.  There was also a legal dispute after the President of France, Nicolas Sarkozy's party used the song at several conferences and then offered the band �1 compensation.  Eventually Sarkozy's posse relented and paid out $38,000 to the band.

There's two video's for the song - both equally as entertaining.  One is a fan made video that features two kids lip syncing and cuts to videos of people dancing, the other one is the creepy official MGMT video released in 2009.

I'm not going to try decipher the lyrics or the meaning of this song because I don't have a hot clue. That being said this song is a gooder and worth a listen.



You were a child, 
crawlin' on your knees toward it. 
Makin' mama so proud, 
but your voice was too loud. 

We like to watch you laughing. 
You pick the insects off plants. 
No time to think of consequences. 

Control yourself. 
Take only what you need from it. 
A family of trees wantin', 
To be haunted. 

Control yourself. 
Take only what you need from it. 
A family of trees wantin', 
To be haunted. 

The water is warm, 
but it's sending me shivers. 
A baby is born, 
crying out for attention. 
Memories fade, 
like looking through a fogged mirror 
Decision to decisions are made and not bought 
But I thought, 
this wouldn't hurt a lot. 
I guess not. 

Control yourself. 
Take only what you need from it. 

A family of trees wantin', 
To be haunted. 

Control yourself. 
Take only what you need from it. 
A family of trees wantin', 
To be haunted. 


Control yourself. 
Take only what you need from it. 
A family of trees wantin', 
To be haunted. 

Control yourself. 
Take only what you need from it. 
A family of trees wantin', 
To be haunted. 

Control yourself. 
Take only what you need from it. 
A family of trees wantin', 
To be haunted. 

Control yourself. 
Take only what you need from it. 
A family of treeeeees...

"The Great Escape" - Patrick Watson

Tropicana you genius you

Since becoming involved in the wonderful world of marketing I find myself analyzing marketing campaigns.  Print ads, billboards, TV commercials.  I pass judgment and over analyze them all from a marketing perspective.  Instead of sub consciously being influenced by advertising I find myself becoming consciously aware of it and then making the decision as to whether or not I allow myself to be influenced by their message.  The other day at work we were discussing effective commercials and the first one that came to my mind was a particular "Tropicana" commercial.

The "Fake Sun" in Inuvik

I'm creepy.  In several ways, and one of those ways is that I have an incredibly strong and weird aversion to anything orange/citrus-ey.  I HATE the color orange, the smell of orange, and I especially hate the taste of orange.  Despite all of the aforementioned hatred for orange, I found myself disappointed after watching the Tropicana commercial that I couldn't buy Orange Juice the next time I went to the store.  The premise for the commercial is promoting Tropicana's theme, "Brighter mornings for Brighter days". For those of you not from Canada,  Inuvik, Northwest Territories is known for two things. 1.) Being cold, and 2.) Several weeks of complete darkness during their winter.  Tropicana invited a group of Canadian filmmakers to capture the moment where they "brought back the sun" to Inuvik during the town's frigid and dark winter.On January 9, 2010 Tropicana raised a 36-foot wide illuminated helium balloon over Jim Koe Park in Inuvik.  The residents watched as the balloon shone as brightly as the real sun in the black sky.
In a brilliant move on Tropicana's part, the stunt coincided with Inuvik's annual Sunrise Festival, which celebrates the return of the sun after weeks of darkness. The success of the commercial is evident even in the fact that I am sitting here writing an entire blog about a Tropicana commercial.  Bloggers, newspapers and the media picked up on this feel good commercial and wrote about it without ever being prompted to or "sold" on it by Tropicana themselves.

Look how happy he is (tear)

As mentioned, I"m a sucker for most things in life and this commercial makes me tear up.  Watching the proud faces of the Inuvik people illuminated in the glow of the Tropicana fake sun reminded me that we take alot of things for granted.  We forget that something as simple as the sun is a privilege for some.  The song played during the commercial was "The Great Escape" by Canadian artist, Patrick Watson.  The highlight of the band's career to date seems to be the Tropicana commercial, and being featured on the movie "One Week".  Patrick Watson is an experimental Indie band who has been compared to the musical styles of Pink Floyd and Rufus Wainwright.

Patrick Watson

Fans of "The Great Escape" have interpreted the song to be about suicide and depression, suicide being "The Great Escape".  Although the song could be interpreted in a morbid sense, I think that it's meant to be more literal.  It talks about a "Great Escape" and someone who "Gets in his car and drives away, from all the things that we are."  An escape could be just that.  When things get too hectic,stressful or upsetting we all need an escape.  The song applies beautifully to the theme of the commercial, because the fake sun provides an "escape" for residents of Inuvik from the constant darkness they've been subjected to.  The song  reminds you that there's a light at the end of every tunnel, "Don't be afraid, just eat up all the gray, and it will fade all away, Don't let yourself fall down."





Bad day, looking for a way,
home, looking for the great escape.
Gets in his car and drives away,
far from all the things that we are.
Puts on a smile and breathes it in
and breathes it out, he says,
bye bye bye to all of the noise.
Oh, he says, bye bye bye to all of the noise.

Doo doo doo doo doo noo noo
Doo doo doo doo doo noo noo noo noo
Doo doo doo doo doo doo doo
Doo doo doo doo doo doo noo noo noo

Hey child, things are looking down.
That�s okay, you don�t need to win anyways.
Don�t be afraid, just eat up all the gray
and it will fade all away.
Don�t let yourself fall down.

Doo doo doo doo doo noo noo
Doo doo doo doo doo noo noo noo noo
Doo doo doo doo doo doo doo
Doo doo doo doo doo doo noo noo noo

Bad day, looking for the great escape.
He says, bad day, looking for the great escape.
On a bad day, looking for the great escape,
the great escape.