Journal

cold0sk's top albums (overall) 1. Hadouken! - Music For An Accelerated Culture (156) 2. Kanon Wakeshima - Shinshoku Dolce (141) 3. Muse - The Resistance (100) 4. Mozart - A Masterpiece Collection (88) 5. Arcade Fire - Neon Bible (81) 6. Sigur Rós - Med Sud I Eyrum Vid Spilum Endalaust (80) 7. 雅-miyavi- - VICTORY ROAD TO THE KING OF NEO VISUAL ROCK (71) 8. Foge Foge Bandido - Não fui eu que estraguei (67) 9. Radiohead - Kid A (57) 10. The Legendary Tiger Man - Femina (56)

Nice pictures like this make me want to have a camera for once and all! I think be able to capture moments and compose the right frame in one second is something interesting. I feel like that boy next to Jónsi, curious. He should have 7 or something, I like the way he take the camera and look through maybe wondering about how to make it work or thinking how things can be inside this?. I like the expression of Jónsi too, enjoying the curiosity of the kid and been amuse to witness the discovery.



I stumble upon with this series of pictures by Sigur Rós in Swaziland -a country in Southern Africa- on Flickr. For what I had read they did a visit there for UNICEF. The pic was taken by Georg, the bass player.

(*Click* on the image to go to the source)

11/11/2009 - Kings of Convenience (+ Feist): Le Bataclan, Paris
11/10/2009 - Prince : Le Grand Palais, Paris
24/09/2009 - Soirée Custom, Le Nouveau Casino, Paris (The Boxer Rebellion, Telegraphs, Are We Brothers?)
08/09/2009 - Muse : Théâtre du Châtelet, Paris
29/08/2009 - Rock En Seine, St-Cloud (Billy Talent, The Offspring, Faith No More)
14/07/2009 - Christophe Maé, Johnny Hallyday : Champs de Mars, Paris
03/07/2009 - Main Square Festival, Arras (Ace Out, Phoenix, Lily Allen, Kanye West)
02/07/2009 - Main Square Festival, Arras (Amy Macdonald, The Ting Tings, Coldplay)
28/06/2009 - The Mars Volta : L'Olympia, Paris
21/06/2009 - Keinwood & The Brain Machines : Lille
16/03/2009 - Franz Ferdinand : L'Aéronef, Lille
24/02/2009 - Chris Cornell : La Cigale, Paris
21/01/2009 - The Rabeats : Fnac, Lille
12/11/2008 - Tahiti 80 : Le Splendide, Lille
22/10/2008 - Micah P. Hinson : Caf&Diskaire, Lille
14/08/2008 - Rock En France, Arras (Gojira, Within Temptation, Metallica)
06/07/2008 - Main Square Festival, Arras (Vampire Weekend, The Wombats, The Dø, Sigur Rós, Radiohead)
11/06/2008 - Feist : Aula Magna, Lisboa
04/06/2008 - Rage Against the Machine : Bercy, Paris
29/04/2008 - José González : Aula Magna, Lisboa
05/03/2008 - The Mars Volta : L'Olympia, Paris
28/11/2007 - David Fonseca : Fnac do Chiado, Lisboa
06/11/2007 - Rufus Wainwright : Coliseu dos Recreios, Lisboa
30/10/2007 - Imbert Imbert, Cocoon, GOMM, Sharko : Bataclan, Paris
30/09/2007 - The Police : Stade de France, Paris
27/09/2007 - Incubus : Zenith, Paris
14/06/2007 - Michel Polnareff, Bob Sinclar, Nelly Furtado, Laura Pausini, Tokyo Hotel : Champ de Mars, Paris
29/06/2007 - Phoenix, Air, Etienne De Crecy, Alex Gopher : Château de Versailles, Versailles
22/06/2007 - George Michael : Stade de France, Paris
16/06/2007 - The Rolling Stones : Stade de France, Paris
15/05/2007 - Chris Cornell : Showcase, Paris
09/05/2007 - Queens of the Stone Age : L'Elysée Montmatre, Paris
05/05/2007 - Fight Burst : Le Fléau, Douai
24/04/2007 - The John Butler Trio : La Grand Rex, Paris
08/04/2007 - Deftones : Trabendo, Paris
03/04/2007 - Malibu Stacy : Boule Noire, Paris
05/03/2007 - Incubus : Pavilhão Atlantico, Lisbon
04/03/2007 - Michel Polnareff : Bercy, Paris
19/01/2007 - Sean Lennon : Fnac St-Lazare, Paris
28/11/2006 - Noel Gallagher & Gem Archer (Oasis) : Le Cabaret Sauvage, Paris
09/10/2006 - George Michael : Bercy, Paris
03/07/2006 - TMN Summer Sessions, Lisbon (G. Love, Sean Paul, Burning Spears, ...)
08/06/2006 - Red Hot Chili Peppers : Bercy, Paris
23/05/2006 - Broken Social Scene : Café de la Danse, Paris
24/04/2006 - Phoenix : Trabendo, Paris
13/02/2006 - Korn : Canal+, Pleine-St-Denis
14/11/2005 - Bloc Party : Zenith, Paris
16/10/2005 - The John Butler Trio : La Cigale, Paris
10/10/2005 - Jamiroquai : Man Ray, Paris
22/09/2005 - Syd Matters : Divan Du Monde, Paris
12/09/2005 - Dionysos : Canal+, Pleine-St-Denis
07/07/2005 - Charmers : Jardines Del Valle, Sevilla
30/06/2005 - Los Andabluses & The Lucille's Horns : Jardines Del Valle, Sevilla
29/06/2005 - Neorama : Jardines Del Valle, Sevilla
13/06/2005 - Alter Bridge : Trabendo, Paris
01/06/2005 - Jamiroquai : La Cigale, Paris
24/05/2005 - Sinsemilia : Olympia, Paris
15/05/2005 - Donavon Frankenreiter, G. Love, Jack Johnson : La Cigale, Paris
24/04/2005 - The John Butler Trio, Jude, Tété : Bataclan, Paris
07/04/2005 - System of a Down : Trabendo, Paris
18/03/2005 - Alter Bridge : Boule Noire, Paris
15/03/2005 - The Mars Volta : Elysée Montmartre, Paris
24/02/2005 - Mudvayne : Boule Noire, Paris
08/02/2005 - G. Love : Divan Du Monde, Paris
14/12/2004 - Sinsemilia : Elysée Montmartre, Paris
26/11/2004 - Festival Recall I-Mode, Elysée Montmartre, Paris
01/11/2004 - Maroon 5 : La Cigale, Paris
06/10/2004 - Anastacia : Zenith, Paris
23/09/2004 - Nosfell : Guinguette Pirate, Paris
28/08/2004 - Rock En Seine, St-Cloud (Muse, Radio 4, Auf der Maur, Nosfell, Buck 65, ...)
03/07/2004 - Placebo : Grand'Place d'Arras, Arras
04/06/2004 - Sinclair : Zenith, Paris
27/05/2004 - Incubus : Zenith, Paris
06/02/2004 - Keziah Jones : Virgin Megastore des Champs-Elysées, Paris
25/10/2003 - Jane's Addiction : Elysée Montmartre, Paris
10/09/2003 - Muse : Trabendo, Paris
30/07/2003 - Jamiroquai : Presqu'île du Gaou, Six-Fours-Les-Plages
28/07/2003 - Nice Jazz Festival, Nice (Jamiroquai)
07/07/2002 - Seat Beach Rock Festival, Ostende (Jamiroquai, David Bowie, No Doubt, ...)
06/07/2002 - Seat Beach Rock Festival, Ostende (Muse, The Prodigy, Garbage...)
23/10/2001 - Jamiroquai : Bercy, Paris

01. What's your favorite song by Neutral Milk Hotel?
"Two-Headed Boy, Part Two".

02. How did you get into Felt?
Kathrin put "All the People I Like Are Those That Are Dead" on a mixtape for me, and I fell hard for Lawrence.

03. Who is your favorite member in Orange Juice?
I'm probably contractually obliged to say Edwyn Collins, but I do have a soft spot for the songs by James Kirk.

04. What's your favorite lyric by The Magnetic Fields?
this is an unreasonably difficult question. actually, no:
"I could dress in black and read Camus / Smoke clove cigarettes and drink vermouth / Like I was seventeen, that would be a scream / But I Don't Want to Get Over You."

05. Have you ever seen Sufjan Stevens live?
yes, in fact!

06. What's your favorite album from The Shins?
Wincing the Night Away.

07. Do you own any merchandise from The National?
nothing, sadly. (not even a tote bag from Wicker Park.)

08. What is a good memory you have of The New Pornographers?
dancing around my room to "Graceland" while packing for college.

09. Is there a member of the same age as you in Belle and Sebastian?
hahaha, no. they are all much older.

10. When did you first get into The Shins?
2003, right after Chutes Too Narrow was released. I heard "New Slang" on the college radio station and it was downhill from there.

11. Who likes The Smiths along with you?
many, many people. on my last.fm friends list, primarily Kathrin.

12. Which song did you first hear from of Montreal?
"So Begins Our Alabee", on a Polyvinyl sampler.

13. What song made you fall in love with Clap Your Hands Say Yeah?
I believe it was "Upon This Tidal Wave of Young Blood", after some blog described it as "David Byrne fronting The Cure".

14. Which song do you not like by The Only Ones?
there are actually quite a few, shamefully, but my least favorite is probably "Deadly Nightshade".

15. Why do you like Morrissey?
what a question! his stunning voice (even at such an age), his splendid pop sensibilities, his terrific way around a witty, erudite lyric...

16. Where did you first hear Voxtrot?
oh, wow, I don't actually know. I think I heard "Mothers, Sisters, Daughters, and Wives" on a blog somewhere right after it came out, but I didn't really start to love them until I heard "The Start of Something".

17. How long were The Jesus and Mary Chain a band before you liked them?
haha. they were a band for sixteen years and weren't a band for three before I liked them.

18. Does Matthew Sweet have a song that gives you a bad memory?
well, yes. most of his songs are irrevocably linked to certain memories for me, but "Someone to Pull the Trigger" and "Life Without You" are the worst.

19. When did you get into The Cure?
the winter of sixth grade, when my brother burned a copy of Staring at the Sea: The Singles for me.

20. How long have you been into The Jesus and Mary Chain?
seven years.

21. If Jens Lekman had a concert 300 miles away, would you drive there to see them?
well, I can't drive. but if someone else were going, I would certainly consider it.

22. How many The Replacements albums do you own?
christ. nine, not counting bootlegs and unreleased compilations.

23. Do Vampire Weekend have a song that makes you cry?
hahaha, definitely not.

24. Do The Wedding Present have a song that makes you happy?
of course! especially "This Boy Can Wait".

25. Do Wilco have a song that makes you smile?
yes indeed. "Nothing'severgonnastandinmyway (Again)" is a guaranteed smile-maker.

26. What's the last song you've listened to of Guided by Voices?
"Twilight Campfighter".

27. Is there a song by Elvis Costello and the Attractions that you've listened to more than 30 times?
"(The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes", though my statistics don't show it... that was mostly in seventh grade.

28. What is a song from Joanna Newsom that you've only listened to once?
"Three Little Babes". NEVER AGAIN.

29. Is there a song you are sick of hearing by Robyn Hitchcock and The Egyptians?
I am not really a fan of "The Fly".

30. What song got you into Echo and the Bunnymen?
"Bring on the Dancing Horses", once again via the local college station.

31. What is your favorite single by Bright Eyes?
single? probably "If The Brakeman Turns My Way".

32. If The Weakerthans hated you, what would you do?
I would be really upset, probably. and regret not seeing them when I could have in September, before I learned of this sad development.

33. What would you say if one of the members from R.E.M. asked you out?
um, accept, obviously!! I don't care that all of them are either over fifty or almost there (yes, Michael, this means you). we would be the May/December romance for the ages.

34. Would you care if Editors had a boyfriend/girlfriend?
of course. I demand that Tom Smith remain perpetually single.

35. Who has the best voice in The Posies?
I prefer Jon Auer's songs.

36. Do you think Elvis Costello and the Attractions are good looking?
haha, I was actually just talking about this today. yes.

37. How many times have you listened to your favorite song by Arcade Fire?
I have apparently only listened to "Intervention" 11 times. this might be wrong.

38. How many CDs do you own of Sparks?
I actually only own Kimono My House, but my mother has most everything else on vinyl.

39. Is there a song from Radiohead that makes you mad?
I don't think so.

40. Which member from Yo La Tengo do you want to see go solo?
I actually really like Dump, a.k.a. James McNew's side project. but I wouldn't want Ira and Georgia to split up.

41. What does your favorite song from The Velvet Underground remind you of?
"Sweet Jane" ... actually, reminds me of standing on the corner with a suitcase in my hand. hahaha. presumably because whenever I find myself in that situation, I start singing that song.

42. Did you hate Hüsker Dü at first?
no, I just thought they were really noisy. and Grant Hart was super cute. whatever, I was a twelve-year-old with priorities.

43. Does your best friend also listen to The Hold Steady?
haha, yes. although not without reservations. (no lyrics about Pringles cans, please.)

44. Do you think your parents would like The Broken West?
both my parents love them, actually.

45. Do Pixies have a song that makes you want to dance?
who doesn't dance to Debaser?

46. Have you ever seen Joy Division live?
yes. that time when I time-travelled.

47. Do you like The Broken West's name?
I guess so. I like it better than their previous name, "The Brokedown".

48. Is there someone in Paul Westerberg that you want to go out with?
this question is adorable. yes, I want to go out with the teenager in Paul Westerberg who wore his heart on his sleeve, rode his bike everywhere, and kissed girls under bridges on autumn nights, as described in "First Glimmer".

49. Do you know anyone that hates Shearwater?
I don't believe so.

50. Have you ever danced to a song from Sigur Rós?
it's probably happened.

BuildUsFiction's top albums (overall) 1. Brand New - The Devil And God Are Raging Inside Me (118) 2. Brand New - Deja Entendu (89) 3. Brand New - Daisy (88) 4. Sigur Rós - ( ) (87) 5. Sigur Rós - Takk... (80)

Here are ten albums from this decade (no doubt due to undergo many revisions over the next decade) that I think stand out from the rest. This may well lean toward the start of the decade, since that's when I was a student and when people used to send me free records. In no particular order (well, actually, alphabetical):

Amy Winehouse - Back To Black
I am biased towards 'Frank' because of its association with my student radio days, but I have to give 'Back To Black' the nod because of the accomplished songwriting across the album, particularly on 'Wake Up Alone' and the title track.

Gorillaz - Demon Days
One of the more criminally omitted in the current round of lists - hard to think of a more likeable and diverse album in the decade. The end is particularly brilliant, from Dennis Hopper's yarn of 'Fire Coming Out Of The Monkey's Head' through to the soaring title track.

Arcade Fire - Funeral
Will be in every top 10 everywhere, I can almost guarantee it, and that's because it's the one that best bridges a unique sound and keeping our old friend melody.

Radiohead - In Rainbows
If it is Radiohead's last album, then at least it's a high. It is the most successful fusion of their emotional power and their experimental leanings, exemplified on 'All I Need'.

Sigur Rós - Með Suð Í Eyrum Við Spilum Endalaust
Tough to pick one Sigur Ros album over any other, but this one stands out for me because of the restraint of tracks like 'Íllgresi' and 'Góðan Daginn' alongside the usual expansive numbers like 'Ára Bátur'.

Lambchop - Nixon
Because we all occasionally need to hear something like 'Grumpus', I suppose.

Alicia Keys - Songs in A Minor
The depth of this album is what sets it apart from the rest of Alicia Keys' albums and everything else in its genre. I refer particularly to the tender closer 'Caged Bird' and, a couple of tracks earlier, the immaculate piano-led ballad 'Butterflyz'.

Elbow - The Seldom Seen Kid
It's hard to imagine how Elbow are going to follow this album. Even among all its epics ('Mirrorball', 'Starlings', 'One Day Like This') they have never reached a peak like 'The Loneliness of a Tower Crane Driver'. Until they outdid that by adding in the BBC Concert Orchestra.

M. Ward - Transistor Radio
My main incentive for including this is that, for all that M. Ward is perhaps not the most innovative artist of the decade, I'm still listening to and enjoying the songs on this album. And it would be difficult to tire of a song like 'Here Comes The Sun Again'.

Ray LaMontagne - Trouble
It's all about the voice. A song like 'Trouble' could sound just silly in the wrong hands, but it, and all the other songs on the album, are delivered with a raspy sincerity that, as many others have commented, sounds like a man who has been through the mill. His other two albums are excellent also, but this debut is still the best.

Honourable mentions to Bon Iver's 'For Emma Forever Ago' and Guillemots' 'Through The Windowpane', both of which reach brilliant peaks ('Lump Sum' and 'Redwings' respectively) but are let down by some much weaker moments, and She & Him's 'Volume One' and PJ Harvey's 'Stories From The City, Stories From The Sea' (current favourites, but I only got them recently so don't want to get carried away a la Q magazine naming OK Computer the greatest album of all time).

„Au weia, ist das poppig!“ – das ist in etwa die Kurzform des Gedankens, den ich nach erstmaligem Hören von „Gobbledigook“ – der ersten Singe aus dem neuen Longplayer von Sigur Rós hatte. Dazu war mir der Rhythmus viel zu hektisch – wo waren nur die Seele, die monströse Emotionalität geblieben, welche den bisherigen Output der Isländer kennzeichneten?

Die ersten Kritiken zu “Með Suð í Eyrum Við Spilum Endalaust“ klangen dann ebenfalls nicht so, als müsse man das Album unbedingt kaufen – von Fröhlichkeit war da die Rede, von Eingängikeit und Zugänglichkeit – und einem Produzenten, der bereits mit Branchengrößen wie U2 gearbeitet hatte. Das sind per se keine besonders schlechten Attribute, aber mir gefielen Sigur Rós eben insbesondere durch die melancholische Sperrigkeit solch monumentaler Werke wie „()“ oder „Ágætis byrjun“ – schon „Takk“ driftete stellenweise in recht seichten Pop ab.

Und so plätschert das Album vor sich hin – alles schöner Pop, ich will hier nicht missverstanden werden – und die ungewohnte Leichtigkeit kombiniert mit den typischen Stilmitteln der Isländer – die Stimme des Sängers, Glockenspiele, Chöre, ab und an ein sehr tiefer Bass – sorgt trotz alledem für schöne Momente.

Mit dem Titeltrack, der neben dem treibenden Rhythmus einigermaßen orchestral aufgebaut ist, ändert sich dieses Bild langsam; die vordergründige Fröhlichkeit weicht einer stilleren – aber ungleich schöneren – Melancholie.

Zu hören ist dies zum ersten Mal ironischerweise im getragenen „festival“, das fast nur aus Gesang und einer Orgel besteht.

In der Folge werden deutlich leisere Töne in ebenfalls deutlich reduzierteren Songs angeschlagen – laut.de mags nicht, ich dagegen sehr. Muss ja nicht alles nach U2, Coldplay oder Muse klingen…

„Fljótavík“ ist ebenfalls sehr ruhig, beinah zerbrechlich – vermutlich der zarteste und schönste Song des Albums.

Das letzte Stück dann ist eine Premiere: zum ersten Mal ein englisches Stück der Isländer.

Ein gutes Album, wenn auch mit deutlich weniger Ecken und Kanten, als ich es mir bei dieser Band wünschen würde.

Großartigerweise wird das Album in kompletter Länge auf der sehr schönen Seite von Sigur Rós gestreamt http://www.sigur-ros.co.uk/band/disco/medsud-dot.php– unbedingt anhören!

I've noticed that my music taste is of opposite ends.
There's almost nothing in between.

First of all, the "Light" music I have in my collection include:

Carpenters, Emilíana Torrini, Seabear and Gaelic Storm.

Then there's the "Dark":

Johnny Hollow, Enigma, Björk and Sigur Rós.

I think everyone's like this.
Then again, most music artists have a little bit of variety to their music.

Look at the Carpenters, they are depressing as well as ridiculously happy at different times of their music career.

Franky =)