Hurts to liv - liv

Hurts to liv - liv

You know, when you are guilty of something you often get that feeling that makes you try to stay away from everything related to your guilt and makes things even worse. It's not like it was/is my duty to post on this blog, but what happened to it, or better, what didn't happen to it (i.e. me not posting anymore) makes me feel bad, a little bit because of what it represented for me, a little bit for the (few) people that I hope I reached out to and entertained with my stories and especially "my" songs. Unfortunately all good things come to an end, and so it is for blogs. I tried to carry 'A song or two per day' on and on as much as I could, but at one point I lost the necessary motivation to carve 10-20 minutes (almost) every day to devote to it. Be it for (finally, yay!) being involved in a serious relationship, be it because the new school is eating out most of my "free time", be it... I don't know what other reasons, but it just happened that I slowly stopped posting. One thing I can reassure you about is that I haven't lost my passion for music, even if I haven't found a way to keep sharing it here! Rather, this 2017 has been a great year for new music, I am so excited about many of the new albums and songs that have been released! I have been (with my special one) at Lollapalooza Paris, seen a bunch of very nice gigs! Life goes on, I have been having a rough month: school gets more and more stressing, and however much I like doing a PhD and the road it is projecting me to, I often stop to wonder whether it's really worth the insane amount of stress and huge effort I am putting into it. Special one went to study abroad for a couple years, which makes things incredibly harder, so I'm having a bit of a tough time, hoping for things to be better in the future. Let's say I am in investment mode...! Music becomes even more important at these times, as it really is the one thing that brings me forward sometimes. So here I am, back on the blog. I just wanted to let you know I'm alive and well, notwithstanding the hardships of life, and that... well, you never know! I might pop up here every now and then and share something, if I find it in myself to write something else that is not academic thoughts..! I'll leave you with a brand new songs released by liv, the "super-group" founded last year by Lykke Li and a bunch of other Swedish famous singers and musicians. The song seems to come at a perfect time for me, so I hope it can help those of you who are also having it a bit rough lately! Wish you the best!!

Human behaviour - Björk

Human behaviour - Bjork

I don't think my life could be summed up in any way better than with this song right now! Having a rollercoaster week, and the more stress kicks in, the more extreme mood changes are. Still, so frustrating and irresistible to approach the definitely definitely definitely no logic!

"If you ever get close to a human

And human behaviour

Be ready to get confused

There's definitely, definitely, definitely no logic

To human behaviour

But yet so, yet so irresistible

And there's no map

They're terribly moody

And human behaviour

Then all of a sudden turn happy

But, oh, to get involved in the exchange

Of human emotions is ever so, ever so satisfying"

Chasing shadows - Santigold

Chasing shadows - Santigold

My semester is finally starting in full force and I already hate it. Or so they say. I love sushi. But how is that related? People keep messing with my private thoughts, but I can't say I complain. I feel (more) bipolar (than usual), but this time it's justified methinks, as the second person is outside of my head and, well... contributed in making my life so full that I started this post on Saturday night and I am ending it one day after, following a tiring but satisfying hiking day! Cheers to a full life!

Indecision - Shura

Indecision - Shura

Here I am, back to my beloved blog after one week of absence! Well, half of this absence has been justified by the breaking down of the modem at home, which left me with no comfortable Wi-Fi access, but I have also been relatively busy, partly planning for this weekend's getaway! I am finally taking my ass out of Hong Kong for the first time since I came here, and it was about time, right before going back home for xmas! My life is of course still relatively messy (and interesting), but filled with indecision, as usual. I hope I'll figure out things over the change of year, as if that could bring fresh air into one person's life...!

Life me up - OneRepublic

Lift me up - OneRepublic

Life has a weird way of unravelling and, well... you can't do anything but go with it. Sometimes you get bored for months and then a few weeks or days look like a whole season of an addictive TV series, what surrounds you is... hard to describe, almost surreal! Things go wrong, and somewhat right, and then wrong again. You find yourself going out every night for a whole week at 26, probably for the first time in your life. And it somehow makes sense, it's not just a good feeling, but it's a feeling and that's what matters in the end, isn't it? We are all just tryin' to find somebody who lifts us up when we're feelin' down, aren't we?

Northern lad - Tori Amos

Northern lad - Tori Amos

I often say that life is a sea of shit with a few moments of happiness interspersed here and there, and somehow even when it looks like I might be proven wrong, I end up being right. What can one do about it? Learn to swim through the sludge and try to keep your head up.

"Had a northern lad, well not exactly had

He moved like the sunset, god who painted that

First he love my accent, how his knees could bend

I thought we'd be ok, me and my molasses

But I feel something is wrong

But I feel this cake just isn't done

Don't say that you don't

And if you could see me now

Said if you could see me now

Girls you've got to know

When it's time to turn the page

When you're only wet

Because of the rain..."

We float - PJ Harvey

We float - PJ Harvey

Sometimes you need to take a few days more slowly, take your breath, and maybe you let a whole week pass by without posting... well, it didn't go so slow after all I guess! Then you have great Friday nights and Saturday nights when... well, let's say your mood swings, to use a euphemism. Letting people in is what makes your life better, but also what makes you vulnerable and sometimes make you feel like shit willy-nilly. Add stress onto it, and the picture is complete. Thanks goodness destiny sends to your path other people , that can help you get it out in a better way than you could do by yourself. Words are powerful. Remembering what is important is important. Cyclical relationship. We float. Take life as it comes.

#blogbirthday All we are - OneRepublic

All we are - OneRepublic

I don't know why I fixed in my mind the 20th of October as the blog's birthday, when I actually posted the first entry on the 19th of October, but well... does it really matter?
So, I'm here to say HAPPY BIRTHDAY to the blog!!! It turned 3... well, yesterday actually! It's incredible that I've managed to stick to it for so long given everything that's happened in these past three years and especially given that I didn't expect to stick with it for so long in the first place! This third year has been the hardest one so far, I'd say. I've been having plentiful of free time in my hands and that brought me to waste it on TV series and travelling (well, that time wasn't wasted at all!) and other things, so that I haven't paid enough attention to 'A song or two per day', which has actually become 'A couple songs per week', or something like that! Lately, since I started my PhD and moved to Hong Kong, things have been hectic once again and it's been even harder to find the time and energy to come and post here, but still, I'm trying my best!
So, as I keep saying, this blog has been the longest commitment of my life (it has been actually), so let's make somethings special for its third birthday, hoping that I will be able to finding my balance and carrying on with all parts of my life, this included! To celebrate the blog's birthday I want, as usual, to share something special with you. This year I've chosen my favourite OneRepublic song, given that they have just released their new album and after this and 'Native', I really got the feeling they're not gonna go and make anymore great music as they did on their first two album, as they have started a more commercial path (understandably, but I must say that doesn't make me happy at all). Moreover, just a couple of months ago I left everything I had at home to embark on a new adventure and, knowing that most of it will be there again when I come back, of course being far away doesn't allow me to enjoy my past relationships as much as I could when I was back home. That doesn't diminish them, rather... they just evolve. So "Time could tear you apart, but it won't break anything that we are... We won't say our goodbyes, you know its better that way, we won't break, we won't die, it's just a moment of change! All we are, all we are, is everything that's right..."

Tonight - Lykke Li

Tonight - Lykke Li

I guess we all get one of those days every now and then, those days when you just feel like sh*t for no particular reason, but for a lot of particular reasons. Stress builds up, especially when you are just starting a new chapter of your life or when you are going through a particularly intense period. Even worse when these two things happen together. Add in the fact that you thought were through with your mid-youth crisis but well... you know that answers don't just fall from the sky and solve all of your problems at once. Anyway, I think I conveyed my malaise well enough! Then I go to take a walk and find myself doing yoga exercises in my favourite reading spot in the park nearby (the corner for old people to exercise), past midnight, Lykke Li in my earphones and voilà! Feeling sooo much better. Sometimes it's so easy... not to solve your problems. You never solve your problems (for good). What you need to do is to regain your balance, and I've managed to do that. For today. Thanks Wii Fit, thanks music (once more)!

#sundayrevival Beautiful - Christina Aguilera

Beautiful - Christina Aguilera

I guess that beautiful moments just come from either being with the right people, or doing the right things... if you are able to find the intersection of these two sets, well, you've just scored a goal! It doesn't take much to get there, but somehow life manages to always make it quite complicated, and this makes the cherishing of these special moments even more important. Out of the intersection of sets mentioned above, here is a song for you today. I used to love this when I was a teenager... it was on one of those compilation albums that were quite popular in the 90s and early 00s, one of the first CDs I added to my library. It's always a pleasure to take this off the dusty shelf!

Hope there's someone - Antony + the Johnsons

Hope there's someone - Antony + the Johson

"Hope there's someone who'll set my heart free, nice to hold when I'm tired" sings Antony in her homonymous 2005 EP, and how could we say her request doesn't make sense? We all are looking for that someone special who will set our heart free, who will take care of us when we die (and hopefully while we are alive, even more so!), who will change our life, who can help us through our darkest times and enjoy the good ones with us. Aren't we? The search is hard for most... the ones among you who have found that person(s), cherish your moments with them! And let's hope we will all get the chance to spend some great time with our special people!

1234 - Feist

1234 - Feist

Hello my dear readers, I am finally ready to announce to you all my next step in life! After almost 10 months of enjoying life and what I called my own "early-retirement", I am back on track (kinda). I came to Hong Kong today and this fall semester I will begin my PhD studies in a University here in the city! I am quite excited about the whole thing and very happy that I have the chance to follow this path, which I hope will open up new, interesting opportunities for my future! I am of course a little sad to realise that many people I care about will be farther away from me and I have compiled a playlist for them to remember me and, most of all, for me to feel a little bit nostalgic! This song is one of the few (or maybe the only one) on it that hasn't seen the light on this blog yet, so here it is for you all! To new beginnings!!

6th avenue heartache - The Wallflowers

6th avenue heartache - The Wallflowers

Going on with American music, I have already posted a few Wallflowers songs lately, this is another one of their most famous and also another one of my favourites off their second album, which I've really enjoyed listening to. Today has been a weird day in its "standardness": things that were supposed to happen and didn't, things that did, things that made me feel busy and gave me a kind of urgency that was totally meaningless, just because they all piled up together. All in all it's not a day I will remember (maybe), but one of those days that I think have an impact on the kind of people we are without us realising it. As all of them are, in a way. "The same black line that was drawn on you, was drawn on me..."

One headlight - The wallflowers

One headlight - The wallflowers

So far the last month has been the toughest for me and my usual commitments: I neglected the blog for a whole 10 days while I was travelling to Japan and have been posting irregularly since I came back, I practically kind of abandoned my daily Japanese studying time, I haven't been going swimming for almost a month, no exercise... between travelling, fever and other (mostly pleasant) errands, I have completely overturned my daily and weekly schedules, moving from a totally idle life made of telefilms, music and plans to a full life packed with travel, events and social gatherings. Don't mistake me, I like them both, and both of them can be consuming in the long run, so I think life is all about balancing the two lifestyles off, I hope I'll be able to do it in the next few months! In the meanwhile I have a bunch of songs calling for their spot here, I start with one of The wallflowers' best hits!!

Head first - Junip

Head first - Junip

Do you tend to jump into situations head first or feet first? That's the question Junip are asking today and, well... personally I wouldn't know what to answer. I tend to be a very rational human being from time to time, but when it comes down to taking decisions, I mostly base my choices on guts rather than logical judgement. The few times I've tried to take important decisions rationally, I couldn't come to a straight answer and in the end I always relied on my feelings. Does this make me a head-first kind of person? Might as well be... and where I am now would just confirm that! Cheers from Abu Dhabi airport, where I am in transit!

Your life, your call - Junip

Your life, your call - Junip

Lately I have been having a lot of time (like, a lot) to think about my life, where it is going, how I am trying to shape my future, how to fill my present... of course I'm receiving a lot of pressure from society (i.e. my parents, my family, my friends and so on), as we are all, but at this time of my life in particular, being back at home after my first job experience went... not so well... I don't know, it's weird. I'm very, very happy that I got a plan sorted out and that, if everything's gonna go well, I'm gonna start a new path in September, so I can't even say or be told that I'm uselessly wasting my time. I'm just wai(s)ting my time! And I know it and I have thought about it and I have kind of made peace with myself, saying that I will do travels I've been wanting to do for quite a long time, and trying to use this time to do things that I won't have time to do in the next future or that I didn't do in the past. Yet these things are not so numerous or time-consuming, and I end up having loads of time that goes into TV series, movies, wasting time on the internet and so on. Plus, the less you do, the least productive you get; this is very true for me. I'm trying to keep it up and doing my best filling this time, but it hurts whenever people say that I'm wasting these months, acting like a "parasite" (my mother's words), because it's partly true, but it's also true that it doesn't make sense trying to invest my time into things that I know I won't pursue, as I already have my plans... All of this just to say, never forget that it's YOUR LIFE, it's YOUR CALL! Needless to say, this song has been stuck in my head for weeks!

Disparate youth - Santigold

Disparate youth - Santigold

My life is getting a little bit out of control, especially as far as the wake and sleep cycle is concerned, but I'll work it out and find a good balance again (hopefully)! Older people often complain about our generation, saying that we think everything is due to us, that we don't invest time and energies into life issues as they did, that we are lazy and disrespectful, that we just complain and live in the social media realm rather than real life. All of these things are partly true, but also partly false. I believe that young people today are as disparate as they've ever been, because of the increased opportunities and information available, the range of choices available in any meaningful life decision has dramatically increased in the last few decades. That made us more picky, more choosy, more uncertain about what we want to do because there are so many possibilities... but this is our time and I think we are all doing our best. In the end, we are just the product of older generations and of all the past history of the world. We are the disparate youth generation and in the name of the moon, we will punish you!

"We know that we want more, a life worth fighting for"

Fist-fighting a sandstorm - Sia

Fist-fighting a sandstorm - Sia

There happen to be many times in our lives when we just keep trying to do things we already know we can't do, and even if miracles exist, they don't happen often. Letting go of something that isn't working for you is sometimes hard, but when you finally realise that you need to cut it, when that switch clicks in your head, there's just one thing to do: stop trying to make it work and turn the page. Fist-fighting sandstorms... we all did and will do that at one point, so the lesson to learn is that you need to stop doing it as soon as you realise you ARE indeed trying to punch flying sand. Don't be afraid of change, as the feeling of getting rid of something that makes you feel bad is one of the best feelings in the world!

Everybody but me - Lykke Li

Everybody but me - Lykke Li

I've been intensively listening to Junip in these past few days, but I don't feel like posting two songs of theirs in a row...! So I'm gonna go back to the last song I had among my drafts from two playlists ago (it sounds like ages ago, it's been maybe 2 weeks...), and this is Lykke Li (she's Swedish too in the end). This is a bonus song of her 'Youth novels' session, and that is probably my favourite album of hers. I can really relate to the lyrics of 'Everybody but me', as it doesn't happen seldom that I don't feel like doing things that many people do or think like most people. It's not a... necessity of being different, it's probably just that I don't really like to do things just to "belong" to a group, so I turn out to be the weird one more often than not. And then I do things most people don't, but that's another pair of sleeves (as we say in Italy)! Today for instance I bought tape to stick a couple of cork boards to the walls of my room. I've been having them around for years, one of them with all the most relevant tickets of my 4-month exchange in Montréal (and all the travels I made from there) and the other one, which I started filling out today, with concert tickets and public transport tickets (from cities I've been to) from 2013 onwards. I'm really happy I finally did hang those two girls, I've been meaning to for ages but never found the right moment!

After all is said and done - Junip

After all is said and done - Junip

When you have to close something, to put an end to something that's not making you feel good, you just gotta do it. Try to be fair and square, honest but resolute, and hopefully things will go better for all of the parties involved. I've had to say "that's enough" to things quite often in the last dew months and it's never an easy choice, realising (first) and then accepting that something is not making you better off and is not likely to even in the long term, taking the decision and (the hardest part), making it effective. That's the most difficult part when there are other people involved, but you gotta do what you gotta do, be it leaving a job, ending a relationship, saying goodbye to a place or else. Goodbyes and adieus are sad but inevitable, and even when you immediately feel happier and more relaxed, there's always this kind of melancholy that makes you sad for things not going the way you hoped for. That's exactly what this song is to me, the feeling it talks about and evokes.

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