Well, the year 2009 is ending soon - and I hardly posted ANYTHING on this blog. I'm sorry...I guess. The thing is, I really didn't feel like posting something at all.
When I was in Sweden I had a reason to write something - living abroad was a new situation for me and everyday something exciting/interesting happened. Now, living in munich isn't really that exciting.
I did some really great and interesting things this year - seeing various concerts, travelling for work (Vienna, Mauritius, Madrid, Berlin,...), travelling with my boyfriend (Vienna, Zermatt, Italy, Berlin...), meeting new people,...but still, I didn't feel the urge to tell everyone about it, especially about the bad things that happened (and they did happen...).
And - I also didn't really have the time to write regularly. And whenever I had the time, I didn't want to spend it in front of blogger ;)
So, anyway, I hope I will make more posts in 2010...
For now, I give you a short list of the best albums in 2009:
10 - Grizzly Bear - Veckatimest
Seriously, on of the nicest Indie-Albums of the year...Saw them live in November and they were really good...though the audience was quite bad and annoying.
09 - Frankmusik - Frankmusik
I was sooooo looking forward to this record. I loved all the demo songs that were floating around in 2008...and actual album was good, but it lacked some interesting twists. All in all it was a nice record that got a bit boring after a few listens...
08 - Florence and the machine - Lungs
When I was in London in august, every record store had huge posters of the album...I was curious and bought the album and didn't regret it - nice voice, interesting structures and some catchy songs...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TpLXQorSQe8
07 - Tori Amos - Abnormally Attracted To Sin
Sorry Tori, you didn't make it in the top 5...the album was good, but some of the songs were quite bad...and as always lately, the album was far too long. Anyway, she made up for it with 2 great concerts...
06 - Archive - Controlling Crowds
It's dark and haunting...and sometimes that's all you need.
05 - Gossip - Music for Men
I guess there's nobody who didn't hear the name "Beth Ditto" in 2009...the new album was catchier and more radio-friendly than "standing in the way of control"...but it is a fun record that was a great soundtrack for the summer 2009
04 - God help the girl - God help the girl
I fell in love with this album the second I heard the first few chords of "Act of the apostle"...sure, it's cheesy and over the top...but it's a nice album that makes me feel warm and at home...
03 - Imogen Heap - Ellipse
One of the few albums I downloaded on iTunes (the rest I bought in an old-fashioned record store ;) ). It's weird, whenever I listen to Imogen I feel like letting go of something that's worrying me. Her songs are so well produced and interesting, that I forget everything that's going on around me.
02 - Fever Ray - Fever Ray
I've always been a fan of "The Knive" and when I heard that Karin Dreijer Andersson (of the Knife) will release a solo record I was sceptical...the first time I heard the album I was surprised - it didn't really sound THAT different than the last the Knife album...but it was different in some parts. Accompanied by some interesting and well-produced videos the songs grew on me. I listened to the album in spring when it was released, forgot about it and started listening to it again in late-summer and autumn - that's when I found the true beauty of the album...
01 - Patrick Wolf - The Bachelor
Mr. Wolf didn't disappoint me. For me, The Bachelor is the record of the year. He went independent and produced an interesting and personal album full of great songs. Some of them are slightly overproduced with too many instruments, others are reduced to only a few instruments...and others are wild creatures with techno-sounds. I'm already looking forward to the sequel "The Conqueror" in 2010 :)
Sunday, December 27, 2009
Friday, February 27, 2009
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Update on my life
Oh well, I guess I should stop saying "sorry for the late update", since it won't change anything. The truth is, I've been really busy and not motivated at all to write something. Busy with life and work..mostly work, I'm afraid. Anyway, I have some days off this week, so I could order my life and get started with my thesis. I'm already starting lists like "Things I want to do after I've finished my thesis", but instead I should research, work and study for my thesis. But at least I'm motivated now, compared to january, where I was so lazy and not motivated at all to do anything for my thesis. And my dad keeps bugging me because he wants to know what I'll do after my studies...the truth is, I really don't know. Yes, I'd like to work, but I'd also like to take some months off (at least for the summer) to enjoy life and do things I couldn't do if I were working (travelling, spontaneous trips,...). But well, for now my plan is to finish my thesis in time and as soon as I can see a light on the horizon/as soon as I feel that my thesis is going to be finished on time, I will start worrying about the future.
What else is there to say...not much, actually. Right now, my life is not very exciting. I moved to another apartment in munich - life's so much better here! I finally feel comfortable and have a nice roommate who doesn't hide in his bedroom like my former roommates (but you can't be angry with them, since the last apartment didn't really offer any room for socialising).
I even started to get "into munich". When I came here last july, I didn't really like this city but now I started to notice that even munich has some really nice spots and I can't wait to check them out in spring/summer.
Valentine's Day was nothing special, except that my lovely boyfriend was here to visit me and he gave me flowers (sounds so kitschy, but it was really nice of him, because it was the first time that somebody gave me flowers :))) ). We went to the BMW museum together, and as most people who know me can imagine, it wasn't my idea to go to a car-museum. Anyway, I took some pictures, but not of the cars....
Soooo before I go on babbling about random stuff nobody's interested in, I better stop now.
M.
PS: One of my favourite songs right now
Emprie of the Sun - We are the people
Yes, they sound a lot like MGMT whose funked-up, crazy and hyperactive "electric feel" album made 2008 quite special...but Empire of the Sun are a bit more relaxed and chilled..I love it :)
What else is there to say...not much, actually. Right now, my life is not very exciting. I moved to another apartment in munich - life's so much better here! I finally feel comfortable and have a nice roommate who doesn't hide in his bedroom like my former roommates (but you can't be angry with them, since the last apartment didn't really offer any room for socialising).
I even started to get "into munich". When I came here last july, I didn't really like this city but now I started to notice that even munich has some really nice spots and I can't wait to check them out in spring/summer.
Valentine's Day was nothing special, except that my lovely boyfriend was here to visit me and he gave me flowers (sounds so kitschy, but it was really nice of him, because it was the first time that somebody gave me flowers :))) ). We went to the BMW museum together, and as most people who know me can imagine, it wasn't my idea to go to a car-museum. Anyway, I took some pictures, but not of the cars....
Soooo before I go on babbling about random stuff nobody's interested in, I better stop now.
M.
PS: One of my favourite songs right now
Emprie of the Sun - We are the people
Yes, they sound a lot like MGMT whose funked-up, crazy and hyperactive "electric feel" album made 2008 quite special...but Empire of the Sun are a bit more relaxed and chilled..I love it :)
Monday, January 5, 2009
Music...
It's quite late...and I'm sitting in front of my laptop - quite tired, but I don't feel like going to bed. Instead I'm listening to some new music and I realized one thing - it seems 2009 will be the year of Electro-Disco-Pop. Mark my words and remember those names: Frankmusik. Little Boots. La Roux. Lady Gaga. Well, Lady Gaga (gosh, that name is bad, especially if you're from a country were "gaga" is a childish expression for poop) is quite successful already, but my favourites are Frankmusik and Little Boots. Both of them are A-M-A-Z-I-N-G.
Frankmusik's "Three Little Words" blew me away the first time I heard it in august (a demo version). Stuart Price (of Zoot Woman; he produced Madonna and, lately, The Killers) produced Frankmusik's debut album, so I'm quite sure that it will me massive... And a guy who dances on a giant piano in his video has to be good ;) And his other songs are great too... I'm in love with his music right now (When you're around, Made her smile, In Step,...great!!)
Little Boots is a cool girl from England and she was involved in the Dead Disco project and made some homemade youtube videos (mostly cover versions of various songs). So far I've heard three of her own songs - Meddle , Every little earthquake and Stuck on Repeat, all of them are absolutely brilliant! Stuck on repeat sounds like Kylie Minogue, Róisín Murphy and Björk mixed together in an amazing shiny disco-ball dance track. Probably the first single of her album will be "Every little earthquake" which doesn't sound like Stuck on repeat at all...still, it's a very good song :)
Well, and La Roux seems interesting, I haven't heard a lot of her stuff, but I like what I've heard so far (check out Quicksand, her first single).
And Lady Gaga (goooosh, that name!) is quite popular with "Just Dance" or "Poker Face"...I'm still not sure whether to like her or not... Some of her songs are really catchy and good, other's are a bit boring... But she's fierce and has a great attitude, as you can see in this video.
Anyway, I'm sure there are a lot of other great bands/artists having their break-through in 2009, but I just think that 2009 really seems to be full of electronic dance pop music...but probably that's just because I like this kind of music...
Other than that 2009 promises to be a very exciting year in music - apart from those Newcomers Patrick Wolf, Tori Amos...and hopefully the Scissor Sisters will release an album...and some other artists I like will release a new album too (and I really hope that the Hidden Cameras will release a new album...)
Sooo, that's just random babbling...sorry about the lack of private details, I promise that I will write more interesting stuff the next time....
I'm going to bed now, otherwise I will write more dumb and boring stuff...good night,
m.
to say good night - Meddle from Little Boots
Frankmusik's "Three Little Words" blew me away the first time I heard it in august (a demo version). Stuart Price (of Zoot Woman; he produced Madonna and, lately, The Killers) produced Frankmusik's debut album, so I'm quite sure that it will me massive... And a guy who dances on a giant piano in his video has to be good ;) And his other songs are great too... I'm in love with his music right now (When you're around, Made her smile, In Step,...great!!)
Little Boots is a cool girl from England and she was involved in the Dead Disco project and made some homemade youtube videos (mostly cover versions of various songs). So far I've heard three of her own songs - Meddle , Every little earthquake and Stuck on Repeat, all of them are absolutely brilliant! Stuck on repeat sounds like Kylie Minogue, Róisín Murphy and Björk mixed together in an amazing shiny disco-ball dance track. Probably the first single of her album will be "Every little earthquake" which doesn't sound like Stuck on repeat at all...still, it's a very good song :)
Well, and La Roux seems interesting, I haven't heard a lot of her stuff, but I like what I've heard so far (check out Quicksand, her first single).
And Lady Gaga (goooosh, that name!) is quite popular with "Just Dance" or "Poker Face"...I'm still not sure whether to like her or not... Some of her songs are really catchy and good, other's are a bit boring... But she's fierce and has a great attitude, as you can see in this video.
Anyway, I'm sure there are a lot of other great bands/artists having their break-through in 2009, but I just think that 2009 really seems to be full of electronic dance pop music...but probably that's just because I like this kind of music...
Other than that 2009 promises to be a very exciting year in music - apart from those Newcomers Patrick Wolf, Tori Amos...and hopefully the Scissor Sisters will release an album...and some other artists I like will release a new album too (and I really hope that the Hidden Cameras will release a new album...)
Sooo, that's just random babbling...sorry about the lack of private details, I promise that I will write more interesting stuff the next time....
I'm going to bed now, otherwise I will write more dumb and boring stuff...good night,
m.
to say good night - Meddle from Little Boots
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
2008
Hey everybody!
It's been a long time since my last post - sorry for that. Quite a lot of stuff has happened, but somehow I didn't feel like writing anything about it. I guess it was because I had so much to do at work that I was rather glad when I had some time for myself.
Anyway, 2008 is coming to an end...and what a year it was! Some pretty exciting stuff has happened - Sweden, 2 amazing Rufus Wainwright concerts in Stockholm, I broke my arm, Hong came to Austria, I found an internship, moved to munich, started working, went to the Oktoberfest...and much much more has happened.
I think it's really nice to think about 2008 and all the things that have happened in my life and the life of dear friends...
And, I also enjoy thinking about all the great music that was released in 2008. A friend of mine said that 2008 was a pretty bad year in music, since only a few really good CDs were released. I don't think so - Portishead, Alanis Morissette, Hot Chip...all of them released new albums and a lot of new bands appeared on the music scene and quite a lot of them had very strong and good debut albums.
So, I know it's not very original, since everybody who has blog seems to write about their top 10 of 2008 :P Anyway, here are my favourite tracks/bands of 2008 - no special order:
Hot Chip - Ready for the floor
Such a fun song! The whole CD is great, definitely on of my favourite bands of 2008!
Vampire Weekend - Oxford Comma
They are cool but somehow nerdy and make great music...it was the perfect album to chill in the summer sun.
Alanis Morissette - Versions of Violence
I was so looking forward to her new album, but I was a bit disappointed in the end. But there are some really good songs on it and this is one of my favourites.
Sigur Rós - Ara bâtur
I fell in love with them in 2008. Nothing more to say.
The Ting Tings - That's not my name
Another song/band that's so much fun! I don't know how many times I screamed and danced to this song in 2008.
MGMT - Kids
Psychodelic music.
Portishead - The Rip
Although their new CD is quite different from anything they did before, I really like it. Let's hope that we don't have to wait another 10 years for a new album.
Frankmusik - 3 Little Words
I love this song! And I'm really looking forward to his album in 2009 :)
Amanda Palmer - Leeds United
This woman is a genius! Her lyrics are amazing, her videos are great and she's just a very amazing person.
Hercules & Love Affair - Blind
Genius! To mix Housebeats with Antony's (from Antony & the Johnsons) vocals works great! Definitely one of the most interesting albums of 2008.
Sam Sparro - Black & Gold
One of my personal "heros" of 2008. I like his CD, though there are some weak songs on it..but all in all it's a really good debut. And he has a great voice (and well, he's quite good looking :P )
Jay Brannan - At first sight
I've been following his "career" on youtube every since I watched "Shortbus" for the first time. In 2008 he released his first CD..finally :)
The Sound of Arrows - Danger
Another song that was so much fun in 2008! This swedish band will release their new album in 2009...
Swedish for Beginners - Magical Machines
I downloaded this song a while ago (it was a legal download) and I fell in love with it :)
BWO - Lay your love on me
Well, sticky pop...but I remember good times whenever I hear this song...all I say is Stockholm...and a long Disconight at Club G :P
Other than that - Jason Mraz, The Killers, Kent, Fleet Foxes, The Sound of Arrows and lately Santogold rocked 2008 for me :)
So, I'm sure that I forgot something... what are your top songs of 2008?
2009 will bring some great new song/albums too, I'm sure. Obviously I'm really looking forward to the new album of the one and only amazing SCISSOR SISTERS!! YAY!!!! But also Patrick Wolf, Antony & the Johnsons, Tori Amos and Imogen Heap will release new CDs...definitely something to look forward to :)
Have a good start into 2009!
Manuel
It's been a long time since my last post - sorry for that. Quite a lot of stuff has happened, but somehow I didn't feel like writing anything about it. I guess it was because I had so much to do at work that I was rather glad when I had some time for myself.
Anyway, 2008 is coming to an end...and what a year it was! Some pretty exciting stuff has happened - Sweden, 2 amazing Rufus Wainwright concerts in Stockholm, I broke my arm, Hong came to Austria, I found an internship, moved to munich, started working, went to the Oktoberfest...and much much more has happened.
I think it's really nice to think about 2008 and all the things that have happened in my life and the life of dear friends...
And, I also enjoy thinking about all the great music that was released in 2008. A friend of mine said that 2008 was a pretty bad year in music, since only a few really good CDs were released. I don't think so - Portishead, Alanis Morissette, Hot Chip...all of them released new albums and a lot of new bands appeared on the music scene and quite a lot of them had very strong and good debut albums.
So, I know it's not very original, since everybody who has blog seems to write about their top 10 of 2008 :P Anyway, here are my favourite tracks/bands of 2008 - no special order:
Hot Chip - Ready for the floor
Such a fun song! The whole CD is great, definitely on of my favourite bands of 2008!
Vampire Weekend - Oxford Comma
They are cool but somehow nerdy and make great music...it was the perfect album to chill in the summer sun.
Alanis Morissette - Versions of Violence
I was so looking forward to her new album, but I was a bit disappointed in the end. But there are some really good songs on it and this is one of my favourites.
Sigur Rós - Ara bâtur
I fell in love with them in 2008. Nothing more to say.
The Ting Tings - That's not my name
Another song/band that's so much fun! I don't know how many times I screamed and danced to this song in 2008.
MGMT - Kids
Psychodelic music.
Portishead - The Rip
Although their new CD is quite different from anything they did before, I really like it. Let's hope that we don't have to wait another 10 years for a new album.
Frankmusik - 3 Little Words
I love this song! And I'm really looking forward to his album in 2009 :)
Amanda Palmer - Leeds United
This woman is a genius! Her lyrics are amazing, her videos are great and she's just a very amazing person.
Hercules & Love Affair - Blind
Genius! To mix Housebeats with Antony's (from Antony & the Johnsons) vocals works great! Definitely one of the most interesting albums of 2008.
Sam Sparro - Black & Gold
One of my personal "heros" of 2008. I like his CD, though there are some weak songs on it..but all in all it's a really good debut. And he has a great voice (and well, he's quite good looking :P )
Jay Brannan - At first sight
I've been following his "career" on youtube every since I watched "Shortbus" for the first time. In 2008 he released his first CD..finally :)
The Sound of Arrows - Danger
Another song that was so much fun in 2008! This swedish band will release their new album in 2009...
Swedish for Beginners - Magical Machines
I downloaded this song a while ago (it was a legal download) and I fell in love with it :)
BWO - Lay your love on me
Well, sticky pop...but I remember good times whenever I hear this song...all I say is Stockholm...and a long Disconight at Club G :P
Other than that - Jason Mraz, The Killers, Kent, Fleet Foxes, The Sound of Arrows and lately Santogold rocked 2008 for me :)
So, I'm sure that I forgot something... what are your top songs of 2008?
2009 will bring some great new song/albums too, I'm sure. Obviously I'm really looking forward to the new album of the one and only amazing SCISSOR SISTERS!! YAY!!!! But also Patrick Wolf, Antony & the Johnsons, Tori Amos and Imogen Heap will release new CDs...definitely something to look forward to :)
Have a good start into 2009!
Manuel
Sunday, November 2, 2008
Identitiy Crisis?
Hej everybody!
Sorry for the lack of posts...Actually I started writing a loooong post about current affairs (the death of a famous politician [Haider] in my homecountry and other stuff like that) but somehow I never finished it...
Anyway, here's a fresh new post...Actually I can't write much, because there's not much to tell.
I feel a bit weird at the moment...I got up quite early today to get started with my master thesis. My goal for today was to find the topic I want to write about and after some thinking and researching I found the topic I really want to do. Now I have to write an Exposé to give to the professor...I started writing it, but I need to do some more research, especially about literature. And I have some more questions about all the stuff, so I need to contact the university this week... Anyway, I also did a timetable with deadlines...I want to be finished with all the annoying bureaucracy in late november, which means that I could start working on my thesis in december..if everything goes well.
Sounds fine, doesn't it? But it's also scary, because I really don't know what I want to do with my life. Until now I always had a "plan" for some years. Back at school I wanted to succeed at the A-Levels and go studying...After I had achieved that, I wanted to be a good student and go abroad for 1 or 2 semesters. Well, as most of you know, I did that. After coming back from Sweden my planning started to get a bit "dizzy". Of course the goal for the next few months is writing my master thesis, but afterwards? I have no idea.
Right now I'm doing an internship, which means I work a lot and I have my daily routines. But when I think of doing that/living like that for the rest of my live I get scared. I'm 22, in my mid-late-early 20s, which means I have (hopefully) many many maaaany years to look forward to. But do I really want to sit in the office from 10-6 for the rest of my life? This is what makes me scared. On the one hand I'm the kind of person who feels better if everything's planned and secured. I want a job, I don't want to live day by day and see what's going to happen. On the other hand, the thought of doing what I do now for the rest of my life, makes me scared. By saying "doing what I'm doing now" I certainly know that I will change work. I won't stay in the company I'm doing my internship - but who knows what will happen next. Maybe I will write my master thesis in munich, working part time for the company...but I really don't know what I should do afterwards.
So, you see, I'm missing a plan. :P
Other than that and the master thesis, my life is OK right now. Munich is OK, I got used to it and the bavarians, but I still don't enjoy it that much. Munich is really not my favourite place to be, but maybe this will change some day. I don't have enough time to really hang out with people and I guess that's an important reason for feeling uncomfortable in munich.
Anyway, that's it for now...
bye
m.
Sorry for the lack of posts...Actually I started writing a loooong post about current affairs (the death of a famous politician [Haider] in my homecountry and other stuff like that) but somehow I never finished it...
Anyway, here's a fresh new post...Actually I can't write much, because there's not much to tell.
I feel a bit weird at the moment...I got up quite early today to get started with my master thesis. My goal for today was to find the topic I want to write about and after some thinking and researching I found the topic I really want to do. Now I have to write an Exposé to give to the professor...I started writing it, but I need to do some more research, especially about literature. And I have some more questions about all the stuff, so I need to contact the university this week... Anyway, I also did a timetable with deadlines...I want to be finished with all the annoying bureaucracy in late november, which means that I could start working on my thesis in december..if everything goes well.
Sounds fine, doesn't it? But it's also scary, because I really don't know what I want to do with my life. Until now I always had a "plan" for some years. Back at school I wanted to succeed at the A-Levels and go studying...After I had achieved that, I wanted to be a good student and go abroad for 1 or 2 semesters. Well, as most of you know, I did that. After coming back from Sweden my planning started to get a bit "dizzy". Of course the goal for the next few months is writing my master thesis, but afterwards? I have no idea.
Right now I'm doing an internship, which means I work a lot and I have my daily routines. But when I think of doing that/living like that for the rest of my live I get scared. I'm 22, in my mid-late-early 20s, which means I have (hopefully) many many maaaany years to look forward to. But do I really want to sit in the office from 10-6 for the rest of my life? This is what makes me scared. On the one hand I'm the kind of person who feels better if everything's planned and secured. I want a job, I don't want to live day by day and see what's going to happen. On the other hand, the thought of doing what I do now for the rest of my life, makes me scared. By saying "doing what I'm doing now" I certainly know that I will change work. I won't stay in the company I'm doing my internship - but who knows what will happen next. Maybe I will write my master thesis in munich, working part time for the company...but I really don't know what I should do afterwards.
So, you see, I'm missing a plan. :P
Other than that and the master thesis, my life is OK right now. Munich is OK, I got used to it and the bavarians, but I still don't enjoy it that much. Munich is really not my favourite place to be, but maybe this will change some day. I don't have enough time to really hang out with people and I guess that's an important reason for feeling uncomfortable in munich.
Anyway, that's it for now...
bye
m.
Monday, October 20, 2008
Springtime for ....
Hello everybody!
Just came back from a wonderful weekend in Vienna... I went to the zoo, went to see "The Producers" and to some museums...It was a really nice weekend, I enjoyed it a lot. My personal Highlight was the Musical "The Producers" - it's so damn funny! The songs are OK, there's no real hook-line, but the lyrics are really funny, the actors were great, the set was amazing and the choreography was great too!
As I said, it's really funny...and it makes fun of nearly everbody - gays, men, women,... Some of the jokes were a bit tough (a gay hitler in a musical called "springtime for hitler"...) and I guess not everybody feels like laughing about it...but me and my boyfriend, we had a blast in the theater :)
The zoo was nice too...I've uploaded some pictures of cute animals ;)
Anyway...tomorrow I will go to the Amanda Palmer concert in munich - I'm so looking forward to that! She's amazing and I've heard that she's an amazing live artist, I can't wait to see her..and probably meet her, because apparently she likes to take pictures with fans...who knows ;) However, I hope there's some nice Merchandising stuff to buy ;)
Bye,
m.
a cool Amanda Palmer song:
Just came back from a wonderful weekend in Vienna... I went to the zoo, went to see "The Producers" and to some museums...It was a really nice weekend, I enjoyed it a lot. My personal Highlight was the Musical "The Producers" - it's so damn funny! The songs are OK, there's no real hook-line, but the lyrics are really funny, the actors were great, the set was amazing and the choreography was great too!
As I said, it's really funny...and it makes fun of nearly everbody - gays, men, women,... Some of the jokes were a bit tough (a gay hitler in a musical called "springtime for hitler"...) and I guess not everybody feels like laughing about it...but me and my boyfriend, we had a blast in the theater :)
The zoo was nice too...I've uploaded some pictures of cute animals ;)
Anyway...tomorrow I will go to the Amanda Palmer concert in munich - I'm so looking forward to that! She's amazing and I've heard that she's an amazing live artist, I can't wait to see her..and probably meet her, because apparently she likes to take pictures with fans...who knows ;) However, I hope there's some nice Merchandising stuff to buy ;)
Bye,
m.
a cool Amanda Palmer song:
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