This Saturday night is a GIRLS NIGHT with a couple of code buddies, and I'm spending all of this morning cleaning up and doing laundry to prepare for it, because I take hours to clean up perfectly and I don't want to do on the exact day the girls are coming over.
This is a sleepover, and we're gonna be inside all night talking and joking and watching movies until the early morning. I had to mull it over it my head what kind of music sets the tone for this kind of scenery. No one wants to try a compile a playlist of a billion songs, though I have done it before, for a random night.
So what I've done is taken a couple of albums that were made, really, for delicious lounge music, and put them into one playlist. To break up the monotony, I have also some party-esque albums as well, along with some instrumentals.
These are a few of those albums I'll be using. Use this as a guide for indoor get-togethers if you'd like. :)
Aquarian Angel By Blue Six
Turn The Dark Off By Howie B
Simple Things By Zero 7
Raise Hope For Congo Compilation Album
Dr. T By Billy Taylor
Off The Wall By Michael Jackson
The Diary Of Alicia Keys by Alicia Keys
Afrodisiac By Brandy
After Saturday is done, y'all will soon get two movie reviews for Safe House....and a surprise new movie. :)
Yes, yes, Happy Valentine's Day and all that jazz. -_-
Nah, just kidding, hoping you' all had a happy valentine's day!
I wanted to add my Valentine-friendly treats on the day, but they are really all-year-round goodies that just happen to work on Valentine's day as well. Plus, this kind of stuff shouldn't just be reserved for that one day, it should be for every day! Any day can be your Valentine's day! Don't be traditional! Be unexpected!
FIRST UP!
A Book.
Remember A Serious Of Unfortunate Events? Lemony Snicket? Yep, this is the real guy, DAvid Handler, using his real name to write a novel about a girl named MIN who send her ex-boyfriend a box full of little things, and with each item she has a letter that tells a story connected to that item and pointing out red flags in their relationship.
Equipped with illustrations of each item, this book is amazing. I finished it in a couple of hours because I couldn't put it down, and this was in a bookstore over the weekend with swarms of people coming in and out. I noticed none of them.
Then, of course, there's the movies. I said I would give you a quick review of Safe House, and I will. But because I'm trying to do the Romantic thing, I must, today, do I review of The Vow, the second movie I saw on Friday.
A couple made for each other are involved in a car crash and the wife loses her memory of their life together. Instead, she thinks she's in a whole different environment with a different boyfriend. Yeah, must be hard for the husband, but he works to try and bring her memory back with love and respect.
Very sweet, very poignant. Perfectly timed for V-Day. Of course, that was probably the intention, but yeah. It's very sweet. Channing and Rachel have pretty good chemistry!
And, of course, no damn V-Day post would be complete without the top songs to….er…set the mood.
Please note that most of these videos can't be watched on here and gives you a choice to go to youtube to view it. Not my fault. Not what I want to happen. But it is what it is. I hope you enjoy the songs anyway!
AHEM!
1) For those who are caught in the throes of that first romance:
2) For those who are single or recently ex-d and darn proud of it:
3) For those who are planning to propose to that special someone:
4) For those who are in long distance relationships:
5) For those who…uh….are trying to set a mood:
6) For those who are unlucky enough to have their heart broken by someone they loe:
7)For those who want the spice of 70's soul to set the mood:
8) FOr those who are so in love, it's embarrassing:
9) For those who are trying to win the heart of that special somebody:
10) And finally, for those who find all the love they need within themselves:
Yes, and so it is that we continue our lives wishing and hoping and flirting and fighting and loving and hurting and forgiving, but I hope this post has something to do with that (arrogant, i know.)
Tonight, we mourn the passing of a phenomenal singer and performer. The beauty of her life is what I choose to remember the most, and those who loved her music and followed her all these years will feel the same.
I like to work in Starbucks at times. It's either really loud with chatter or really relaxed and quiet. Either way, in the Starbucks where I live, they have a flat screen TV where they display the names of the songs playing, along with the artists and the albums. I have to say, Starbucks has really tapped into their musical sides, what with their Starbucks CD Mixes like "Dinner For Two" and "Wind Down," consisting of artists from all walks of life.
So I'm at Starbucks one day, and I hear a couple of really nice songs, so I write their names down and check them out online. Of course, I had to download them afterward,and so far I can't stop listening to them.
"You're Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go" By Madeline Pyroux
I know this is a Bob Dylan song originally, but the way this is arranged, it sounds like it was originally made for both Jazz and Rock. Everything feels like Spring in this song. Pyroux's voice is a pleasant blend of Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday. She sure did study her Jazz Queens!
"Plage" By Crystal Fighters
The moment I heard this, it felt like it was summertime in Venice, California, right on the beach, and we were celebrating somebody's birthday. I've never heard of this group before, but if all their stuff is as fly is this, I'll be tempted to buy all their stuff. This goes right up there on the list of Top Feel-Good Songs Ever.
"Puncture Repair" By Elbow
A very melancholy, poignant song that contains one and a half verses and one chorus. It's one man's voice and a piano playing two notes at a time, yet somehow, the music fills the room the way an Orchestra would. I love the melody progression and the simplicity of the lyrics, and for cloudy days or cold nights this song is perfect.
"Homework" By Big Deal
Remember doing your homework and having something else on your mind, like a bad friend or a lost love? Nowadays whenever I do something similar to homework, this song comes in my head. The sweet, lilting voices of two British guitarists and songwriters enhance this beat-less symphony of acoustic and electric guitars. A perfect sunset tune.
"Late Lounge Lover" By Hacienda
I've got very few salsa jams on my iPod, and that's because I'm very picky about them. It has to really stick in my head, all six minutes of it, before I choose to buy it. So when I heard this, I knew I had found a keeper. Definite what the title implies--aa relaxed lounge joint with hints of charm.
"The Man With The Harmonica" Apollo 440
Probably the most eerie song in this whole collection. I did a little research, and the song was part of a compilation album dedicated to a composer named Ennio Morricone. With that in mind, I'd say they did a pretty good job. They integrated a classic sample into a totally electroniced-out beat, and did it well.
Not just a coffee when you walk into Starbucks, eh? I think I just found a new source of discovery for Art Batter!
Let me know what you think, and tune in soon for a review of Safe House! I'm watching it tomorrow!
Happy Friday, guys! Hoped y'all liked my first ever Friday Fondue last week. Sadly, there is no Friday Fondue today, just a bunch of things I recently got up on that I wanted to share with you. First off, I know that a lot of people are hype about Valentine's Day. Which is on a Tuesday this year. That's a weird day for anything. I mean, there's Monday, the day everyone despises, then there's Wednesday, the middle of the week where people get hyped for Friday, a level of anticipation that only rises on Thursday. But what is Tuesday? That period of, "Eh....well..." At least now, there's something interesting about it for one day. But enough about Valentine's day. It's not for another week and a half, and by then I'll have my V-Day special post. I'm bursting, right now, with this news. It's been out for a few months now, but I just found out about it. Clips of D'angelo performing in Europe are on the internet. I'm going to die.
You see, D'angelo is one of my have neo-soul artists, and he hasn't put anything out since 2000's "Voodoo." For those of y'all who are unlucky enough not to know about him, He came onto the musical scene in '95 with "Brown Sugar," an album of epic epicness, that had singles like the title track and "Lady." Five years later came "Voodoo," which is considered by many critics to be his masterpiece. After a tour in Europe promoting the album, we never heard much of him again. Until now.
And those are just the classics he's performing. Watch him performing some of his new stuff:(Kudos to the uploader of all these videos, we all appreciate it)
You know, it's not such a far cry from how his Voodoo tour was; the ingenuity of his live performances, the creativity of his renditions--it's all there now. Same as it was when he sang "Lady" back in 2000.
Someone on the internet said it best: 2012 will be the year of D'angelo's brilliant comeback, Rhodes and all. In the meantime, I'd love it if someone could lend me tickets to his next show. :)
In other news, I got to go to the movies earlier on today and see "Chronicle," a new movie starring Michael B. Jordan, Dane DeHaan, and Michael Kelly as the three high school friends who come across a strange "thing" (because no one knows what it is) and suddenly have amazing powers, like the ability to fly and move things with their minds. Even stranger is the fact that they get stronger, and whenever the other is in trouble, their noses bleed as a signal.
One of them, the bullied introvert Andrew, films the entire process from lucky children to victims of a power they don't know how to handle properly.
Here's the trailer for a visual.
Now, I have to say, this movie is really, really good. Not only are the actors natural, the compilation of different cameras filming the events in realtime makes everything seem more real and not staged. Did you notice Michael B. Jordan is in this movie? From Red Tails? Oh, yeah, that's the one. I completely forgot about that role when I saw this one, because he's so good at making us forget everything else in the world of reality and focusing on this Steve character, the popular dude who hangs out with the bullying victim and his cousin despite what others think. And of course, other two actors, especially Dane DeHaan, who plays Andrew. Andrew's complicated life and almost antisocial attitude seem not only believable, but relatable. To anyone who has ever felt overwhelmed by life or picked on by everyone, they will see this character and connect to him on some level, though hopefully not on the same level as he is on (watch the movie and you'll understand.)
What this movie does is not just deliver action and supernatural fantasies. It also delivers the human error that is constantly shown around the world to us on a daily basis: when a scarred person is given unlimited power, the world is in danger. I really can't go into more without giving everything away, as the plot is still fresh in my mind, but I'm telling you, I walked out of the theater not ooh-ing over the effects or laughing at the funny parts of the film. I left that theater wondering darkly how many people would end up like Steve, Matt, and Andrew in this world if there were such a thing as supernatural power.
Thanks for tuning in, I'm Cookie Manson tuning out to lounge music before bedtime. See ya next week for more delicious treats from the Art world!
Yes, I'm weeks late, but HAPPY NEW YEAR anyway! I hope all your holidays were as awesome as mine! I had a restful vacation coupled with a quick and busy return to reality, which is why it's taken me so long to come up with anything. I know, I know, not excuses, because there were so many interesting books and movies and artists I was exposed to (AN AVALANCHE) that I wanted to tell you all on the spot but couldn't. I promise, there will never be so long a hiatus again. Except, of course, when the holidays come by again. ;) But one of the things I have come up with for this blog is the special, "FRIDAY FONDUE." Where, on randomly picked Friday's, I pick from each of my three genres (Literature, Film/TV, and Music) one particular thing that I'm gushing over the most. Let me begin with books.
The avalanche of art I spoke about is in part because of a tragedy. I live in an area with a Barnes And Noble, which is my main spot (I LOVE BOOKS) and it closed down for good over the holidays. I was depressed and angry, but what are your gonna do except keep moving? Which I did. After I bought 4 books the second to last day they were open. I'm still reading through all of them bit by bit, but I gotta tell you, one of them has me on the floor cracking up the most.
Yes, Ellen Degeneres has always made us cry tears of mirth on her talk show, her stand-ups, and her old sitcoms, but there's nothing like reading her witty humor on paper. Your imagination fills your head with her voice, and you interpret the jokes exactly as she would have spoken it, which makes everything ten times as funny. Even if it was something as mundane as, "I like pickles," you could imagine it in Bill Cosby's voice, Eddie Murphy's voice, and Ellen's voice, and you'd start giggling uncontrollably.
So far( I haven't finished it yet) this book had been wonderful. If you're looking for a feel-good, light-hearted read, then this surely is the book for you.
Next up on my Friday Fondue list is music, and I have to take you back for this one, all the way back to 1999, the first year we were supposed to die and didn't. New Jack Swing had died down, giving way to a mini-era of ballad-y RnB love songs and the mesh of digital with acoustic and the Backstreet Boys. (Okay, that band was formed in 95, but you get the point.) Overseas, a seasoned female vocal group was releasing their fifth album, infused with African, European, and Western sounds.It was unlike anything I had ever heard before, and to this day I like to bump it in the house whenever I'm feeling good. I'm talking, of course, about Zap Mama's album, A Ma Zone.
Some of you may not know Zap Mama at all, so I'll give you a quick idea: Zap Mama is a belgian female vocal group, founded and lead by Marie Daulne. While the other members have changed and vanished, she has remained the force behind it all. Since 1991, Zap Mama has been putting out albums with unbelievable quality. (If you're looking for her most recent album, it's called ReCreation and it came out 2009.) Anyway, A Ma Zone is the perfect mix of African, American, and European music. Songs like, "Rafiki" (featuring Black Thought) and "M'Toto" are one of the shining examples of pop-infusion, while others have a more worldly taste to them, like "W'Happy Mama," and "Gussie." Seeing as this group started out as pure acapella music, most tracks on here are heavily laden with beautiful three-part harmonies, the more simple of which can be found on "Songe."
I'm not giving one bit of this album away. You MUST go get it yourself. But Let me tell you, if you like that kinda music, you'll be glad you paid for the album.
Finally, I have to acknowledge the movie section, which ended up bigger than I expected due to recent events, but you’ll like it just the same. More recommendations for you, anyway. ☺
How many of you love Mark Wahlberg?
Me, too. He's one of those really great flexible actors who can pull off much any role he is given. I've loved just about every one of his movies that I've seen, so when I saw the trailer for Contraband, I knew I was going to see it. Didn't matter what happened.
The story goes as such: Chris Farraday (MARK) is a retired smuggler with a wife (Kate Beckingsale) and two kids. Then His wife's brother gets into trouble over a failed smuggling operation, and Chris decides to step in, offering to pay back the lost money to the boss. Unfortunately, this proves much more dangerous as his family is being threatened.
At first, I thought it was going to be one way, the expected way. The brother's boss holds family hostage, and Chris turns into an angry vengeful bull. But it's a lot more twisted, a lot more complicated than that. The basic ideas are there, but instead of being boring and predictable, it actually was enticing and fast-paced. Mark's performance as the family loving man with a knack for kicking butt works for him because he has that look and demeanor, even offscreen!
So yeah, this movie is definitely cool.
But Wait, I have to break my own rules. I have to add two more movies that must be seen.
And one of them is involving a Mixed Martial Arts Kick-Ass Queen named Gina Carano.
Yes, Haywire is the new dangerous chick flick out in theaters, starring an actual martial arts sweetheart Gina Carano, latin heartthrob Antonio Bandera, Inglorious Basterd Michael Fassenbender, and Obi-Wan Kenobi. It’s about a woman who does undercover jobs for the government and is caught in a deceptive plan that involves her death, which doesn’t go over so well with her. Before we know it, she’s on a mission to keep her life, protect her good name, and find out the truth, while keeping her eye on the fat cats of her company who put her in this position. Trailer is down here.
And now, the final movie of the Friday Fondue Pack. The movie that is currently number two in the box office, but, if we’re all honest with ourselves, should be at number one with a “Movie Of The Year” Nomination. The movie that took years to put forward and millions of dollars from Lucas’s own pocket.
Yes, I see that some of you are aware of what I’m talking about. And you know I’m totally right. Out of all these picks today, this is the most important one.
The Top Film Deserves The Biggest Space
It’s the perfect true story: 1940’s in Italy, when the Tuskegee airmen were taken about as seriously as the four year old who claims monsters are under her bed, and were given old planes to do nothing of great importance to the war, along came Operation Shingle (just following the movie here) and the Tuskege Airmen proved, even with battered planes, that the color of your skin had no bearing on your skill. After a spectacular victory, they were asked to escort heavier planes and protect them from German attacks, which they did with finesse, shocking every racist jerk around. But I think the trailer might do better explaining than I can.
The cast is a superb line of talented black men: Nate Parker (The Great Debators), Michael B. Jordan (Upcoming movie Chronicle), Tristan Wilds (90210 and The Secret Life Of Bees), David Oyelowo (Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes), Elijah Kelly (Hairspray), Ne-Yo, Cuba Gooding Jr., Terrence Howard, METHOD MAN! I mean, fresh, seasoned, respectable young and older actors whose comraderie onscreen is as palpable as the tobacco Ne-Yo’s character chews—and by the way, for the large amount of characters the movie focuses on, you feel a close connection to each and every one of them, so that any time any one of them seems in even minor danger, you can’t help but sit at the edge of your seat with your fingers in your mouth like French fries. It may have helped that the cast was put through a week and a half of 1940’s style bootcamp to increase friendliness amongst each other, although every cast member states that it was the worst thing by far they have ever had to do in their lives.
And the action in the movie is unbelievably real. Those scenes where the flyers are in battle with the Germans? All simulated. But no one can tell, because with the loud booms and sweat on the flyers faces and the speed with which these planes are flying, you’re not paying attention to whether or not they used a green screen for that one scene, because you’re rooting on Smokey or Joker or Maurice to dodge the open fire and spin around in the air to fight back. When a plane falls, you feel relief. When a Red Tail is hit, you feel the impact in your chest. There were “OH’s” and “Ah’s” at every possible moment because each attack came so closely in between each other that we didn’t have time to calm down. As long as they were in the air, you didn’t get a breather.
And on the ground, they were, again, as I have mentioned, the cosest pack of brothers you’ve ever seen. ON the ground, Lightning (Oyelowo) had a beautiful Italian girlfriend who barely spoke English except to say, ‘I Love You,” and “Marriage.” On the ground, Black Jesus was Deke’s way of coping with the war while drinking was Easy’s(Parker). ON the ground was time for us to laugh or cry without seizing up with fear.
And now I’m getting to that point where I can’t keep praising the movie without giving all of it away. But you need to understand, this is a movie that should have been made and praised a long time ago. Yes, I know there was another movie about it before, but you know the hype surrounding it was just not the same as the well-deserved hype surrounding this film. Lucas gets my permanent respect for putting this film out after years of trying (and I thought I couldn’t love him more after Star Wars.) Every actor gets my fanatic-obsession for their performance (a few of them get extra because I’ve already loved them for so long). And I will praise my readers if they go to se it twice. Trust me, after the first time, you will want to. I certainly do.
Before I end this section and this post, I have to quote a particular scene from Red Tails that I find so bad-ass. Terrence Howard, the Colonel, has just finished a meeting with the other Colonels who have congratulated him on his men’s success with Operation Shingle. One of them, after the meeting, says to Howard, “8 Germans, or 80 Germans, it doesn’t change what I think of you and your boys.”
With the steely serenity of a man who’s already won, Howard replies, “We don’t care.”
Blinking, the other man says, “Respect the Uniform, Colonel.”
“Trust me, the uniform is the only thing I have any respect for,” says Howard, before turning on his heel and walking out the room.
Swag.
Catch me in another week or two for the next update on what’s going on now and what’s going on forever! Peace!
