Still true - Feist

Still true - Feist

Me and wifey are very sad as in a few hours we'll have to wake up (if we are going to get any sleep at all) and get out taxi to the airport in order to get back to Italy, where it's cold and ugly... why can't we stay here?! It's gonna be a shock and I think that instead of looking for a job I'll be planning the next trip (to somewhere hot)!! This week has been very very nice, somehow I wished we would've had more time... anyway we enjoyed it to the fullest, we transformed to "poor people" who were walking all over the place to "rich people" who took taxis even for short distances (but not all the time)! Yet the only thing that I can think about now is a quote of this beautiful song by Feist: "Take me anywhere with you"...

Talula - Tori Amos

Talula - Tori Amos

Today is the 22nd of January, not a particularly special day for many of us, but a very particular day for one of what I believe is one of the best albums of the 1990s, i.e. Tori Amos's 'Boys for Pele' who turns 20 today! I personally wouldn't say it's my favourite album of hers, but I think it's the most powerful one, the one that goes deepest and darkest, the one I immediately go back to when I'm feeling down and depressed. Don't mistake me, many of the songs are enjoyable even when you're not feeling that bad and it still is a great album, but personally I have been able to feel it most strongly during the darkest times of my life. Talula has always been one of my favourite songs off it and is one of those you can enjoy even if you're feeling happy, as I am now!

Blue lips - Regina Spektor

Blue lips - Regina Spektor

Will we ever stop walking?! It's funny how we have been mixing with the underground population of Abu Dhabi, i.e. the "non-locals", the workers and the (few) tourists who happen to not be on a Taxi in that moment. We're liking that a lot, it fells like being in a (rich and modernized) Indian subcontinent, we're mingling with the Indians and Pakistani and Filipinos and so on, eating asian food (from Lebanon to China) and living the heart of the city! Today we also visited the Emirates palace (from outside) and the biggest mall, to then enjoy the sunset on the beach and then went out to eat Lebanese! The blue and orange of the sky is so peculiar...!

Campaigner - Neil Young

Campaigner - Neil Young

Today we have gone to Saadiyat beach, a "trip" organized by our hotel (they take you there with a car, you get access and sun-beds and so on and they come pick you up). We didn't do much, just roast in the sun, venture in the not-so-warm waters a couple times with mixed success and read and listen to some music (including this song, that stuck in my head at one point). Plain and simple. Now I'm red like a pepper, but everything's under control (I hope). Still no plans about tomorrow, gonna keep enjoying our time here at our own (slow) pace! Cheers!

Dark lady - Cher

Dark lady - Cher

Greetings to you, my people, from the warm city of Abu Dhabi, a.k.a. the Arab New York (by us, as it really looks like the Big Apple sometimes)! I'm enjoying a nice and well-deserved honeymoon with my wifey about one year after our trip to Marrakech blew up because of me being sick. Not that this time I'm feeling so well, my cold is here with me and is not leaving, but I hope that the sun will make it go away soon! We're having a good time for now, and we are already trying to understand more about the Arab world: why do the ladies here all wear dark clothes in your opinion? We have our own idea...!

#sundayrevival Josephine - Tori Amos

Josephine - Tori Amos

Once again I'm ready to pack my things and fly, and few other times I've needed this so badly under a physical point of view because... once again I am badly struck by the usual cold and sore throat and... what the hell, how I hate winter!! Warm places are waiting for me, just a couple of flights away, just a few hours away... and then I'll finally be able to get rid of this hideous, annoying inability to do anything with my mouth without suffocating! There is a time for enduring this malaise without taking action to stop it, but not tonight. Not tonight, Josephine.

Flight #303 - Feist

Flight #303 - Feist

My dears, sorry for not posting yesterday but my day has been quite hectic and tough... I woke up at 7.15 to meet a friend for breakfast, talked with her a while before she went off to work, then went back to my aunt's house, rested a little and I was on my way to my (ex) University as I had a few things to deliver to some of my Profs. After a lunch with another friend I went back home, waiting for aunt and we came back together to my grandparents, where mom picked me up and took me home. I've been feeling unwell for the whole day: I cannot process coffee anymore methinks, for after breakfast I've been feeling sick in my stomach for the whole day, plus a sore throat started coming to me and got stronger and stronger, to the point that this morning it's very annoying. For this reason I went to bed at 22.30 yesterday and after waking up at 5-something I stayed in bed until a short time ago, more than 12 hours! Nonetheless my throat is still sore and, given that I have to take a flight tomorrow (yay!) I'm not really happy about that... at all!! My flight number is not the same as Feist's so I guess we won't see each other on the plane... maybe next time!!

Dark sky island - Enya

Dark sky island - Enya

I am in Milan tonight, after spending a very weird day between home and here, waiting for people to come and check household appliances, wasting my time and then choosing to spend some time with people who I care about and who made me feel better in a day that didn't start well. Waking up early is killing me, given my current sleeping times, but I need to go back a little...! Tomorrow is gonna be even worse, as I agreed to meet a friends for breakfast at 8, as she's going to work after that. What remains of me will see another friend for lunch and then probably go back home!

Sugar mountain - Neil Young

Sugar mountain - Neil Young

Hey guys, sorry for not posting anything new yesterday, but the day has been quite full and it ended with a 3-hour movie that ended very late, plus I was too emotionally involved with it and with the song that made me watch it that I couldn't find the strength inside of me to write about something else. The movie is 'Blue is the warmest colour' and I think it's worth all the time spent watching it, I really liked it, especially how the director has been able to make the characters' feelings pass through the camera and the screen and get to the viewer. The song that made me know the film is Alt-J's 'Nara', a beautiful masterpiece that I've been able to appreciate more and more last year to the point that it has probably become my favourite song of theirs. I've been listening to a lot of Alt-J today, but I'm posting something else because... of no reason in particular.
I am finally starting to get towards the middle of Neil Young's discography and listening to his (first?) collection 'Decade' I found a few songs I really like, this being one of them!

Terrence loves you - Lana del Rey

Terrence loves you - Lana del Rey

On the one side I am tempted to ride the Bowie wave and share something of his in the day he left us; on the other side, I must confess I have never followed his music eagerly, I just know (and love) 'Heroes' and probably happened to crush into a couple of other songs of his. The importance of his legacy is undoubted and I am greatly grateful to him, if only indirectly for inspiring many of my favourite music composers, performers and so on. Never say never, maybe the day will come when I'll research into his discography, but for the time being I'll politely wave goodbye from the back of the crowd and go on with my life and with my blog. I don't know why, but lately I always end up posting Lana del Rey's music when events with worldwide resonance happen! Anyway, this is the last song of her (by now not so) new (anymore) album 'Honeymoon' that I really liked, it is a perfect post for me now and I hope you all enjoy it! Remember, the power of music is so strong that it lasts well after people who create it and share it leave this planet and most importantly it is reborn into new generations' singers! Let's be grateful and stay positive!

To the grain - Junip

To the grain - Junip

I'm closing in with Junip's debut album 'Fields' (for now) with this other pearl of a song. I really need some happiness and positive vibes today, as the day is as gloomy as can be: cold, rainy, hazy, monday, "depressy" and so on and so forth. I'm finally starting to feel the lack of purpose in my life after more than one month of "idleness" (idleness filled with winter holidays, travel, hanging out and other pleasant experiences). It's one of these limbo times and I wanna enjoy it, as I have the opportunity of doing things that I wouldn't be able to do while working or being else-how employed. My goodness, life is hard indeed, even when you have to decide how to enjoy it!

Rapture - Antony & the Johnsons

Rapture - Antony & the Johnsons

This afternoon I went back to the cinema after a long while since the last time, I quite enjoyed my time there! We watched Macbeth, a nice one (I didn't recall the plot of the original play by Shakespeare but while the movie went on, it occurred to me that I pretty much knew the main events), very enjoyable and intense photography, sometimes maybe a little heavy but not as much as I expected! A nice dinner after that and here I am, with a full stomach waiting for a new week to begin! It's simple days like these that give you the rapture, especially when everything seems to go right.

Eet - Regina Spektor

Eet - Regina Spektor

After just one post of songs on queue, here I am already straying around with other music... I can't help it, and this is the meaning of the blog itself so I'm just gonna go with it! Thanks to 'The Leftovers' I approached again Regina's second latest album, the 2009 'Far' which I had listened to a couple of times at the time and then left on the side. I'm greatly enjoying it now, its time has come! This was the first single off it if I remember correctly and it's also one of the songs I'm already in love with! Wish you a happy weekend!

Echoes in rain - Enya

Echoes in rain - Enya

I have known that I am behind schedule with my posting with respect to my playlists and tonight I decided to quantify my delay! I have noted some songs off the last playlists of 2015 that have not been featured here yet and that really need to imho; all in all I have a week worth of posts, which not so bad, I can make it... (if I don't keep skipping posts or posting "older" songs that really really need to stay here)!! Well, in case I'll have to resort to some double posting, which would not be half bad given the name of the blog! Anyway, I'm just back from Milan where I spent the whole day, we went out for dinner to celebrate my mother's birthday and it's been nice (and cold). Will be back in town next week for a few things that need to done and a few people that need to be seen! For now I'll just leave you with one of my favs off Enya's new album, which is the beautiful 'Echoes in rain'! Enjoy!

Tennis court - Lorde

Tennis court - Lorde

I know I am incredibly late in posting the good music I'm currently listening to, but I have to take another deviation. Riding on the way of my recent purchase of CDs on Amazon (their delivery is due soon!), amongst which there is Lorde's debut, I wanted to post something of hers, as I am currently unable to move past 'A world alone' after listening to the whole 'Pure heroine'. I noticed that there are still a few great tunes that haven't found room on the blog yet, so I'm gonna put remedy immediately! Here is another one of my favourites, the album opener, I'm sure you guys love it too!

Cha-la head-cha-la - Dragon Ball opening theme (Hironobu Kageyama)

Cha-la head-cha-la - Dragon Ball theme

I'm gonna post something weird, something I don't usually post on this blog, but given that it is part of my music library, I don't see a reason why it shouldn't be here! Are you familiar with anime? Maybe you are but you don't know they're called like that: they are Japanese cartoons, usually transpositions of manga (Japanese comics). Here in Italy lots of them are "sold" as cartoons for kids, while oftentimes in Japan they are young-adult material. One of the most popular anime when I was a kid (and still now probably) was Dragon Ball and this is the opening song of Dragon Ball Z, the most popular (and best) series of the franchise. You can also hear it sometimes as soundtrack during the episodes, it is very hardcore and I'm gonna definitely enter the world of dorks with that... actually I've been living there my whole life!!

Dov'è l'amore? - Cher

Dov'è l'amore - Cher

I recently started listening to the CD2 of Cher's very best and I must confess I've been enjoying it as much as the first half. It's crazy, but it's already been one year since I listened to that one! I can't believe it... anyway after a few plays there are already quite a lot of songs I'm very much into, so expect more Cher to come on the blog anytime soon! She's probably not gonna sing anything in Italian as she's doing here, but I think we'll all be all right! Gosh, how funny it sounds when foreign singers put Italian phrases in their songs!

One year A.D. - Feist

One year A.D. - Feist

Together with two of my recent posts (Neil Young's 'Helpless' and Junip's 'Without you') this has been the last addition to my '2015 Best of playlists' playlist (sorry for the word-play)! It's currently my favourite song off Feist's debut album, which I'm in the process of listening to. This time of year feels weird, as I haven't started listening to "2016 music" yet, but it's not 2015 anymore and organizing my playlists based on years, it feels like I just have to get rid of the old stuff so that I can start with the new! It's also one of these moments when, even if I have a lot of new music to approach, I have a bit of a hard time listening to it and I'd rather browse old acquaintances of mine. Anyway, I'm enjoying this song and that's what matters! In a few days/weeks the transition period will be over and everything will be ok! We indeed got through 2015 years since 1 A.D., didn't we?

Helpless - Neil Young

Helpless - Neil Young

Tonight I went ice-skating for the first time in years, I already wanted to and when one of my friends asked if I wanted to join her, I happily accepted! Once again I scored a nice 0 in the chart of falls and I did quite ok, given my really bad relationship with sports! I'm genuinely helpless in many other physical activities, even if in the last few years, thanks to the Wii Fit and to my going back swimming once a week, I got somehow better! Not to the point where I could say I'm an athlete or even athletic. Not even close. Not gonna happen, I think. Not anytime soon! Yes Neil, stop saying that, I know I'm helpless!!!

A sorta fairytale (single) - Tori Amos

A sorta fairytale

Here we are with the first song of 2016 and to celebrate the beginning of the new year I picked one of my absolute favourite songs ever, the one I've listening to the most according to my iTunes count (taking into account both the original version and the single edit) and, really, one of the songs I love the most. It's magic, as after listening to it more than 300 times, it still hold its magic power as the first time I fell in love with it. The lyrics are beautiful, the melody soothing but with a great rhythm, the song can touch your deepest feelings and at the same time be a perfect soundtrack for a thoughtless ride in your car. The video is absolutely inspiring too, and the whole 'Scarlet's walk' CD is just awesome, I can't wait to be driving in the middle of America just to use it as a soundtrack, walking back on the steps Tori herself was walking while drafting the album. I really hope that 2016 will be like this song: as close to perfection as it can get in this world.

"Like a good book I can't put this day back, a sorta fairytale with you..."

And I rode along side till you lost me there in the open road...

#yearinmusic A song or two per day - Best song of 2015

Happy new year, you all people who follow the Gregorian calendar! I hope this 2016 will bring you (and us all) joy, happy moments and even more great music than last year!

Best song 2015

Here I am once again giving the last look back at this beautiful 2015 in music, this time looking at singles / songs. And this time too, there has been no contest. This past year was the time when I reached 100 plays for the first and only of all the songs that I started listening to from 2012 on, i.e. The XX's 'Crystalized' (which I started listening to in 2013). A few days later I reached 100 plays for a song that was released in mid-2015. And that is my song o the year, without ANY doubt. I'm talking about Florence + the Machine of course, and the song is 'Delilah', a beautiful masterpiece off their new album. I have fallen in love with this song immediately after it's been released, a few days before the whole album came out last June. I have no words to describe just how strong the connection with this song is and how quickly it built up. I will just give it its well deserved 1st place and go on!

Runner-ups (Best song 2015)

I decided to make a ranking of the best 10 songs of 2015 because there have been soo many great
ones! Some of them were released in (late) 2014, but they are all pretty recent!


10 - Mountain at my gates (Foals)
9 - I put a spell on you (Annie Lennox)
8 - Failure (The Ting Tings)
7 - The blackest day (Lana del Rey)
6 - Queen of peace (Florence + the Machine)
5 - Dream (Imagine Dragons)
4 - How big, how blue, how beautiful (Florence + the Machine)
3 - I'm so sorry (Imagine Dragons)
2 - London thunder (Foals)
1 - Delilah (Florence + the Machine)

I hope you can somehow relate to this ranking, please comment with your personal favourites of this past year!! I'll be back soon!

Swan song - Lana del Rey

This seems like the perfect song to close the year!

"I will never sing again and you won't work another day,

I will never sing again, with just one wave it goes away

It'll be our swan song..."

Swan song - Lana del Rey

Putting a closure to all the things that I don't wanna carry forward from this 2015 - a large part of Lana's new album being among those (not this song though) - I really feel like I'm singing the swan song! And what else can I say...? A lot of things actually. I think 2015 has been the year I had been waiting for since 2011, maybe sooner, under some point of view. I broke through many things I really needed to break through, I got a great, great year in music (the best of the last few), a new album by Florence + the Machine (last one was indeed in 2011), I started working (and finished already for now), understood one more path I don't wanna walk, possibly directing myself towards one I would like to walk, who knows if I'll get the chance to...! It's been the year I almost moved abroad for an indefinite period of time, but also the year I open the door of South East Asia for the first time. It's the year I started spending again much more time alone, travelling alone both for work (kind of alone) and for pleasure, and I must confess I didn't dislike a single bit of it. Yeah ok, apart from the going back and forth to Veneto and to Bangkok, and everything, but I didn't dislike being alone, I've had many things to do: the blog to take care of, Japanese studies to bring forward, TV series to watch and more...! Ironically 2015 has also been the year I got to know much more new people, most probably a lot of people that I will never see again in my life (many colleagues, all the people that travelled with me thanks to Blablacar and some other new acquaintances), so a lot of pretty superficial connections... is it normal? I think that at this point of my life it is, being out of school and not sticking to a job for too long, it's ok. All in all I think 2015 has been the year when I finally became an adult, and also the year I understood that being an adult mostly sucks, as I already suspected!! I guess Lana came to this same conclusion...

"Why you work so hard when you could just be free?"

Anyway I'm ready to take it to the next level in 2016, or maybe I'll just be stuck or even go back... who knows? What I know is that I'm excited (and anxious and a little frightened, but let's focus on the excited part!) to face all the new challenges that will appear on my path and to discover a whole lot of new things and places and people! Happy 2016 to you all, I wish you the best. Cheers!

Federico

#yearinmusic A song or two per day - Best album of 2015

Best album 2015

It usually takes me a little while for me to get ready and make this kind of decisions... the best album of the whole year, it's not so easy to say most of the time! In a year like 2014 the fight has been tight till the end... this year instead the winner was already kind of expected and what can I say... it even exceeded the expectations. I think I haven't been feeling any music as strongly as I did with 'How big, how blue, how beautiful' for at least 3-4 years. So many great songs on it, there's just a couple that I have not been overly excited about, but it happened with previous Florence + the Machine albums too. This doesn't take anything away from the greatness of their music, from the reverence that I rightfully devote to this woman and her fellow musicians. Their music is a perfect example of the incredible effect that music can have on our lives and of the reason why I started writing this blog. I cannot be thankful enough to them for sharing their art and work with us.

Runner-ups (Best album 2015)

But 2015 has been indeed a great year for music not only thanks to F+tM. There has been plenty of other albums that I've felt strongly and which have left a mark on me. Among others, I need to mention Kodaline, Of Monsters and Men, Carmen Consoli and Leona Lewis. Yet two albums in particular have been one step above the others to me, and (be it a coincidence or not), they are by artists that I have recently seen / will see in the next future live in concert. The first one in chronological order is Imagine Dragons' sophomore 'Smoke + mirrors', through which they absolutely confirmed of being one of the greatest new bands around: great music once again and a big following, I foresee a bright future for them and I'm happy about it. The other album, which would've probably won this year's contest if it weren't for Florence, is Foals' 'What went down'. I have been utterly in love with their 2013 'Holy fire' and I think that this new work is almost (if not) on the same level with it! Their songs have been the (only) ones able to make me detach from HBHBHB a few weeks after it came out, so thanks to them for putting a stop to my obsession (and giving me a whole new one)!! I really can't wait to see them live next month!

A few words about a couple of disappointments: Mumford & Sons and Lana del Rey. I have absolutely loved the Mumfords' first two albums, but I can't really process this new stuff they have put out... I just found a couple good songs on their album and that's it. I have completely forgotten about the rest. For Lana the situation is not very different: I have absolutely loved 'Ultraviolence' and I really had high expectations about 'Honeymoon', expectations that were mostly unmet. I know her music always takes a while to get under my skin, but a while has passed and I have only been able to feel some 4-5 songs (to be optimistic) on the whole album. Maybe she should have waited a little longer, anyway let's see if my relationship with it will change next year.

This is all for 2015, I can just say goodbye to this awesome year in music with the hope for many, many more like it in the future!

Bye!

Without you (live on KEXP) - Junip

Without you - Junip

The year has almost come to an end and I wanna take a further chance to post music by what has been my favourite new discovery of 2015, i.e. Junip. After finally watching the Walter Mitty movie after people had been suggesting I should watch it for quite a while, I have been enchanted by their debut album 'Fields', both the album itself and the CD2, which practically consists of a couple of their previous EPs. I cannot recommend them enough, I can't wait to listen to their newer album released in 2013 and then finally start to approach Jose Gonzales's solo music. This last Junip post of 2015 is 'Without you', a beautiful, beautiful song off the CD1 of 'Fields'; I chose for you an astounding performance live on KEXP, so that I take another chance to thank the guys who work there and give us the opportunity to enjoy such great performances of live music! Go on and listen to it now, before it's too late!!!

Divine - Antony and the Johnsons

Divine - Antony and the Johnsons

The year is coming to an end, I keep postponing things I have to do, but today I have been doing some of those I have indeed been postponing for quite a long time. Better close it off before the end of the year, right? One of the few things I'm not gonna be able to close off is posting all the nice songs that I have been cumulating in these last few weeks of 2015 and that are claiming a little space on the blog! One by one I hope I'll get to them all, so let's keep it up with Antony & the Johnsons, whose debut album I started listening to more than one month and half ago, but whose songs I still have in my playlists! I've been enjoying their debut quite a lot, and this is one of the last songs I came to appreciate, yet it ended up being one of my favourites! Divine!

The shoop shoop song (it's in his kiss) - Cher

The shoop shoop song - Cher

I guess if you don't know this song by its title, most likely you have heard it around in TV ads or on the radio... I know I did, and I also know that the more I'm listening to Cher, the more I'm liking her music! I got to the second CD of her "Very best" and after a few plays, I'm already in the groove! Needless to say, this is the song I've already been enjoying the most as I already knew it from before! Get ready to get some more Cher on the way, even though it's probably gonna be next year already! I gotta start preparing my review of this very, very fruitful 2015 in music! Stay tuned!

Thank you - Leona Lewis

Thank you - Leona Lewis

I think I'm about to explode...! This past two days have been pretty tough on me and my stomach, I haven't stopped eating since yesterday at lunch and I've stuffed down everything I could, especially a more abundant share of desserts and cakes than I should have! I'm ready to take a pause now, it's just a pity that my swimming pool is closed until the end of the holidays, as I could really use some physical activity! Anyway, it's been nice spending time with the family and creating the usual, nice christmasy atmosphere. It's particularly hard for me to stop this year (and will be even more after the holidays end at the beginning of January) because I really have no idea what I'm gonna be doing in the next months. I should be excited for the things I have going on and for the possibility of shaping my future, and I will be, but I am also anxious and worried, as I can't not be. All in all, I'm sure that whatever will come around next will be in one way or another a useful lesson and/or a great time to enjoy. I wanna take the chance to say thank you for everything I've learned this year, the hard times and also the rewarding times; I wanna say thank you to myself for being able to finally grow, become an adult and take a lot of stuff to the next level.

The humming - Enya

The humming - Enya

I am kind of at a loss being here and needing to choose a song to post... I have posted a lot of Florence + the Machine lately, so I can't keep on; the problem is that in the last 3 days I've been only listening to them, mainly to their new album. The impact of the concert on my relationship with it has brought me to a level close to obsession, and I understand I need to break free (but I keep indulging...)! Anyway, yesterday I've been busy organizing and enjoying my usual xmas dinner with friends and it's been nice to be together, even for just a few hours. Then today I mainly cleaned up the leftovers of yesterday and prepared a little more sushi for tomorrow, as I already had the ingredients ready. I've not been feeling great in the last few days, and tonight I feel especially weak and ready-for-the-flu. Let's see how I'm gonna wake up tomorrow...! Maybe Santa Claus will spread some magic powder on me and make me feel well again! So as to catch two birds with one stone I am posting an Enya song off my former playlist (I'm lagging behind with posting, I know...), as she always puts on that kind of christmasy atmosphere! Wish you a great xmas eve and holidays and everything!

Third eye - Florence + the Machine

Third eye - Florence + the Machine

My goodness... very rarely did I have to wait a few hours before writing a post that I had ready in my heart and (used to have ready) in my head for quite a long time. I noticed that the biggest highlight off 'How big, how blue, how beautiful' that I still hadn't posted here was 'Third eye', and I already knew I would post it in conjunction with the Florence and the Machine concert I've been waiting for SO LONG. But, my dears... I am messed up. I am messed up because of last night and I am just starting to realise it now and I don't know how much time it's gonna take me to get back on my feet. Hopefully it's holidays time and I will have other things to think about, but... my goodness. Last night right after the concert I just said to myself "Wow, once again what a great concert I've been to!". But now... after I drove back to my hometown with my friends, had lunch with them and got home alone, the whole mess in my head started. Apart from the fact that I've been having this song in my head since last night, so that's an even more compelling reason why I am posting it now... I keep on listening to all the songs, one after the other, than the first one again, then another one... How big how blue how beautiful, Queen of peace, Third eye... unbelievable. Let alone when I think about last night's 'Cosmic love', the first time in my life I've seen a whole arena fall silent in the middle of a song, when she paused singing for a few seconds... how intimate, how powerful, how simple, how fantastic. And then I started watching the videos of the concert... goodness gracious, I teared up again while watching HBHBHB, all of us with our blue balloons in hand... I started jumping around the house with the balloon I still have from yesterday, almost crying tears of joy and excitement. And then Long & lost, Mother... I'm gonna stop now because I realise none of you will still be reading at this point. All these words just to say that I am speechless after last night. This is the power of music. I feel alive. I feel my life is worth it.

"You don't have to be a ghost, here amongst the living.

You are flesh and blood,

And you deserve to be loved and you deserve what you are given!"

I couldn't find an album version, so I'm sharing with you the live debut of 'Third eye', a beautiful performance whose video came out a few months before the album was actually released.

#sundayrevival Drumming song - Florence + the Machine

Drumming song - Florence + the Machine

I've been waiting for this moment for about 3 years and it has finally (almost) come! Tomorrow Flo and her band will perform in Milan! I'm still arranging details with my friends, as unfortunately we have two groups of tickets in front of each other at the two opposite sides of the stage, but that's just coincidental! I am quite excited about it all, I've already got in the "totally-Flo" mood yesterday and today I had to take a break because I was consuming my enthusiasm and energies already, a bit too soon! But I'm fully charged up for tomorrow, can't wait to have an amazing night and to sing my lungs out! Speaking of lungs, this is an awesome one off their debut album. Awesome.

It's cool to love your family - Feist

It's cool to love your family - Feist

I think you guys can get a rough idea of what point of my life I am at by the timing of my posts... since I stopped working about 2 weeks ago, I feel like I immediately starting crossing the midnight barrier incredibly often!! Well, that's it and I can't deny I've been feeling very, very well in this past two weeks, I really needed this break to preserve my well-being and I'm happy I went and got it. So, here I am, back in Milan, had dinner with a couple of dear friends and then took a gelato in my favourite gelateria (notwithstanding the cold outside) and got back home, hung my freshly-washed clothes and watched the last episode of The Leftovers season 2. I meant to post this song and, well... given how it ended, I think it really does make perfect sense.

One million bullets - Sia

One million bullets - Sia

While I was driving and thriving all around Lanzarote, I found a radio station ('La top cuarenta') that was putting on some non-spanish music, like Top-40 hits and so and it's been quite enjoyable! In the short time I've been driving I got to listen to two Sia songs, the first single off her upcoming album, 'Alive' and my favourite song off her previous album, 'Elastic heart' (which has been, coincidentally, my best song of 2014... we are almost at the end of the year, so stay tuned for this year's winners soon!). I've been greatly enjoying listening to those songs on the radio, as it means she got the success she deserves. This is another very nice tune out of her upcoming album, which should be out in about a month. Hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed my time here, which unfortunately has come to an end... I'll write again from the gray and cold Milan tomorrow. Have a great night!

Laughing with - Regina Spektor

Laughing with - Regina Spektor

I am watching the second season of 'The leftovers' and I'm loving how I cannot explain right away what the hell is happening and what the characters are thinking and why they are behaving like they do, so multiple levels of interpretation and I think also multiple possible interpretations of things on the same level... a mess. I also took a walk on the seaside under the stars, as I needed to get out and breathe some air and being in contact with nature like this is always mesmerizing and beautiful. All of this brings me to the song that was playing at the end of the episode I just watched, in which I recognised Regina's voice. Searching for it, I realised it is out the first album of hers I listened to ('Far'), and also the one I didn't listen to ever after. Gotta give it a chance in the near future, in the meanwhile let's just remember that we're not laughing to god, but...

Tide - Junip

Tide - Junip

After a long and all-in-all satisfying full-day tour of Lanzarote, I got back to the hotel, had dinner and came back to my room. Driving up and down the hills and mountains of the island from south to north and back has been a bit tiring but it was called for. Some of the places I've seen were quite worth it, some others not so much and most of them anywhere lay in between the awesome and the "meeeh", so good to see but not unforgettable. The highlights are anyway always linked to the sea, and the tides are one part of it that struggled me quite a lot: the beach near my hotel at night gets some 20-30 meters longer, maybe more! It's impressive how the ocean retreats and advances, I'm not used to it as the Mediterranean is a closed sea and the tide events are not so significant! Probably Junip are more used to open waters than me!

Burnt Norton (Interlude) - Lana del Rey

You might remember how I'm not a big fan of Lana's last work. I still retain my opinion, but this is another one of the few exceptions! I really like this short song, I love the lyrics (don't know if they're hers or if they're a quote from some piece of poetry or else; EDIT: yes, just found out they're from a work of T.S. Eliot called indeed 'Burnt Norton'), so tonite I'm leaving you with this!

"What might have been and what has been point to one end, which is always present. Footfalls echo in the memory down the passage which we did not take, towards the door we never opened, into the rose garden."

A grade playa - Sheppard

A grade playa - Sheppard

Don't ask me why, but I found this song (that I absolutely love) in my head this morning, and thus I went to listen to Sheppard's album, which I hadn't approached for quite a while! The song actually is a great fit for today, as I am enjoying some winter time in a nice, nice place, i.e. Lanzarote (one of the Canary Islands)!! I needed to reward myself with some warmth after this long and hard year and given how cold it is back at home. I got here last night and today I spent the whole day at the playa, a nice one 2 minutes away from the hotel: total relax! The sea water is somewhat cold, but on the beach I felt great, with a warm sun and a pleasant breeze, I couldn't ask for more! I wish you all an enjoyable time as the one I'm having here!

#liveweek Blood roses (live in New York) - Tori Amos

Bloos roses (live in New York) - Tori Amos

When I started the #liveweek, the first performance that came to my mind was, obviously, my favourite live concert ever (I just wish I could go back in time and be there...), i.e. Tori's concert for RAINN in early 1997, right after the release of her third album 'Boys for Pele' and after one of her abortions. This is the only concert whose videos have given me feelings (let's say chills) comparable to those that one can get at live events. I can only imagine what would've been like to be there for real! Anyway, this is one of the most powerful songs composed by Tori, one I cherish and tend to listen to only during particularly black moments of my life, as it helps me gather all the negativity and channel it away. This live performance in particular is incredible in my opinion, the drama of it increased by the suffering Tori herself is feeling due to her inability to give birth, a strong feeling that she is channeling towards the audience, and that is amplified by the fact that the concert is in support of RAINN, an organization supporting victims of rape. abuse and incest, an organization that Tori is part of because she went through an episode of abuse herself when she was young. I don't think I can describe with words the feelings that this song generated and still generates in me, but I tried! I think you had better just go and listen to it and, while you are at it, listen to the whole concert, I promise it's a great, great use of your time!
With this I put an end to this first #liveweek, I'm happy about how it went through, so I might consider doing it again sometime in the future! I'm sorry to leave you on such a sad note, but music is feeling and feelings are not always good in themselves, yet I think it's good to let them emerge and to live them fully, whatever they are. Because it means we are alive.

#liveweek Mary Jane (Jagged Little Pill live) - Alanis Morissette

Mary Jane (JLP live) - Alanis Morissette

I couldn't leave Alanis out of this #liveweek of course! Hers has been my first "real" concert as an adult in 2008, and I still cherish the memories linked to that moment, what a great feeling...! The pick of today is one of the songs featured on her record-selling pop-rock debut 'Jagged little pill', which just turned 20 this year and has been re-released with demos and previously unreleased material. This is my mother's favourite album and the only musicassette we've had in the car for years and she's the one who "introduced" me to Alanis "for real", even though she's not a big music fan generally! Mary Jane is an awesome song and this live performance is astounding, you really can't miss it... I feel like going crazy together with the audience! It seems a good cherry on the pie of a nice couple of weeks I just spent in Milan, and tomorrow I'm gonna post the last liveweek entry from a little further away...! Stay tuned and stay curious!

#liveweek Satisfaction (live @ Brit Awards) - Björk & PJ Harvey

Satisfaction (live @ Brit Awards) - Björk & PJ Harvey

By now we're in the second half of this #liveweek, which has been going quite well up to now! Yet I wanna take it to the next level with these last few posts. This is a song that immediately came to my mind when I thought about the whole idea of a set of blogposts about live performances and I feel I cannot leave it out. So, the recipe is quite simple: take a great and underestimated singer/songwriter from England; take a crazy singer/songwriter from Iceland who is ages ahead her current time; take a glorious rock song by the Rolling Stones; mix it all together and... voilà! I dare you to find a 4-minute music video more powerful than this one in its simplicity!

#liveweek Promises (live in Paris) - The Cranberries

Promises (live in Paris) - The Cranberries

Today I'm on time for my post, yay! Proud of myself just for once!! Jokes apart, here I am taking advantage of an advertising break in the middle of X-Factor Italy's final (not that the singers are so great this year, I won't mind missing a part of the show) to share with you a great, great performance of one of my favourite songs off my favourite album by my favourite band, i.e. The Cranberries! This song is the favourite of my friend C, who came with me and another friend at my first Cranberries concert in Milan in 2010. Unfortunately the didn't play this song that time, but they did play it when I went to see them again in 2012 (I was alone that time though...)!! Have a good night!

#liveweek Fitzpleasure - ∆ (Alt-J)

Fitzpleasure - ∆

Here I am again, double posting for today to make up for my lack of yesterday! We can do it! Soo, I think it was pretty much inevitable for me to include some KEXP recordings in this #liveweek, as the Seattle-based radio station is a big big inspiration and source of new (and not-so-new) great music for me! I cannot be enough thankful to them for the great work they make, making videos of great live performances by great artists available on YouTube, so the least I can do is advertise them a little bit! What they did with ∆ was a bit different from their usual recordings, which consist of interviews and intimate live performances; nonetheless the result is, as usual, great and I'm particularly in love with this version of Fitzpleasure, so I hope you all can enjoy it together with me!

#liveweek You got the love (live @ MLNS) - Florence + the Machine

You got the love (live MLNS) - Florence + the Machine

Sometimes you gotta hate yourself, and there's just nothing you can do about it...! After all the excitement I created (in my head) about the #liveweek, I already forgot to post on the second day... I think I'm hopeless, but I'll make it up to you with a double post today (unless I forget to post again later... sigh)! This morning I had to wake up "very early" (at 10 AM) so as to buy the tickets for Florence's concert in Bologna in April, as I just got the news that she and the band will be back in Italy next spring! It's a bit weird to buy a ticket for somebody's concert when you already have another one in the pipeline, but I don't wanna miss any chances of watching them perform live!! In honour of this purchase, I'm gonna post one of my absolute favourite songs in one of my absolute favourite versions just for you! I hope you enjoy!

#liveweek The darker days of me and him (live 2004) - PJ Harvey

The darker days of me and him (live 2004) - PJ Harvey

It's always the same story... whenever I get to be at home for a period of time without any compelling work (or else) events, I end up having even less time for my usual activities: between meals at grandparents', video gaming, courses to carry out downtown and any other business, I neglect the blog, I neglect my Japanese study and everything. But here I am finally! Last week  told you I wanted to do something special, which I ended up not doing, so after missing a sunday post, I will start it now (late, as it's already been Tuesday for two hours, but whateeeever)! What I want to do is to post live performances of music I love for one week, so how could this be called, you might ask... well, #liveweek of course!
I might allow myself to post tunes that have already seen the light on the blog, but this time I will share them as live performances. For this opening post though, I chose a song that has not been featured here yet, and it's one of my absolute favourite PJ Harvey tracks. 'The darker days of me and him' tells the story of a girl who has been burned by (unfulfilled) promises and who dreams about "a land where no man was ever born, with no neurosis, no psychosis, no psychoanalysis and no sadness". It's a beautiful, beautiful song and this version is absolutely great, so don't miss out and stay tuned for more great live music!!

Let it fall - Lykke Li

Let it fall - Lykke Li

It is so very late, I know... in my defense I bring forward... well I don't know what I can bring forward! Maybe that it's been my first day at home as an officially unemployed young man? Maybe that I've been planning a trip all day long and that I ended up booking another one? Maybe that I've been busy putting up the xmas tree? I don't know if any of these motivations are valid, anyway it's half past 2 and I'm still here... and it took me more time to craft the timelapse video of me preparing the tree than to actually prepare the tree! I'm a hopeless digital native! Anyway, I had this song on my mind while getting the fake pine ready, so I ended up working on it with Lykke's music as soundtrack and I must confess it worked quite well! I just hope that the title of this song won't be applicable to my dear tree!! Goodnight my people!

On my way home - Enya

On my way home - Enya

Double Enya post! With this one-two I am finally putting an end for real to my time in Veneto (for now at least, never say never!) and I am all set to start the travel back home! After bringing in a couple cakes at work to celebrate my last day and saying goodbye to all the colleagues, I am now ready to stop by the main office to leave this very computer, cellphone and all the stuff I had been endowed with, and to head west.
I will just leave you (and Veneto, can't underline it often enough!) with a quote out of this song, which I think tells perfectly my story and my current feelings, as they are often the same when you put an end to a part of your life to go back home!

"On my way home I remember only good days.

On my way home I remember all the best days.

I'm on my way home I can remember every new day."

So I could find my way - Enya

So I could find my way - Enya

Last night in Conegliano for me, and with tomorrow I'm closing this Venetian parenthesis that has kept me going for the biggest part of this year. I can't say I won't miss anything about what I had here, especially the people, otherwise I wouldn't have lasted so long, but neither can I deny the relief I'm feeling by heading back home, wherever my home is and will be in the next future (for now I'm going back to my "safe harbour" in my hometown). I have made this choice and it was needed so that I could find my way, and I am also taking this chance to post the first song out of Enya's new album, which I just started listening to but which I am already quite liking, mostly because its sound is very... Enya-like. The old-times Enya. But back to goodbyes... I have spent about 10 months in the Province of Treviso, moving back and forth from here to there and back to my safe harbour and then to Bangkok and more in the meantime. It's been too much, I realise it more and more as days go by. Now I'll be back to my starting springboard, with a little more inertia, ready to take the next jump, goodness knows where. But first, I hope I'll be able to enjoy my time pushing down the springboard!! Goodbye Conegliano, goodbye Veneto, I hope to not see you too soon!

River of sorrow - Antony & the Johnsons

River of sorrow - Antony & the Johnsons

As ANOHNI has just released her first single under her new "stage name", I keep on digging back into her discography with her band 'Antony & the Johnsons' and I keep getting much pleasure out of this, especially now that's winter outside and that her music fits so perfectly with the outside context and the environment. I am just getting ready to say goodbye to Veneto as my experience here is coming to an end (and I hope I won't have to return here to stay anytime soon, no offense!); I already said goodbye to the swimming pool and some other things, and I'm just two days away from being back home for good, and I must confess I am feeling very good about that!

Albatross - Foals

Albatross - Foals

There has been a period a few weeks ago when I've been a little obsessed with this song, but - I don't know why - I didn't find the right chance to post it here. I must confess that the review I had read of Foals' new album as soon as it came out was not excellent, so maybe my expectations were not that high, but all in all I haven't been disappointed at all. Actually I found myself listening to their whole discography quite often lately, and their last album merges quite well within it, with some songs even standing out. This one... it's not one of my favourites off 'What went down' but I've always felt a weird connection with it, that kind of weird connection I happen to feel with songs that are not my favs but that somehow speak to me, usually after very few listens... I wouldn't know how to explain it better, weird connections between me and music!!