#one thing about me is that I’m going to add Cocteau twins to a playlist!

[remus-poopin]

can you do the hogwart houses common rooms?

Here ya go!

Hufflepuff:

This one is primarily power pop, twee, and soul. I tried to get songs that have a warm and light feel to them.

Track list:

1. Like Flies On Sherbert - Alex Chilton

2. Love You - Syd Barrett

3. Wuthering Heights - Kate Bush

4. Dreaming Is Fucking Right - The Marshmallow Kisses

5. Cannock Chase - Labi Siffre

6. Our Love Is Heavenly- Heavenly

7. Les Fleurs - Minnie Riperton

8. Fine - The Cardigans

9. Here Come The Warm Jets - Brian Eno

10. Summer Soft - Stevie Wonder

(+more!)

Ravenclaw:

This one is a lot of shoegaze and dreampop. I wanted to have slower songs here that have a slight dark and dreamy tone to them.

Track list:

1. Winter Now - Broadcast

2. Transitional Bird (Clever Girl) - Candy Claws

3. Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating In Space - Spiritualized

4. Winter Song - Nico

5. Blue Light - Mazzy Star

6. Pretty Girls Make Graves - The Smiths

7. Frou-frou Foxes in Midsummer Fires - Cocteau Twins

8. Starting Over - LSD and the Search for God

9. Famous Blue Raincoat - Leonard Cohen

10. Diamond Day - Vashti Bunyan

(+more!)

Gryffindor:

Lots of upbeat energetic songs for this one. Wanted songs that had a sort of bold feel to them.

Track list:

1. Damaged Goods - Gang of Four

2. Rip It Up - Orange Juice

3. Mandinka - Sinéad O’Connor

4. The Book I Read - Talking Heads

5. Brave Captain - fIREHOSE

6. Orange Crush - R.E.M.

7. Are ‘Friends’ Electric? - Tubeway Army

8. Sound and Vision - David Bowie

9. No More Heroes - The Stranglers

10. Incinerate - Sonic Youth

(+more!)

Slytherin:

Going for dark and slightly gothic sound here. These mostly have a intense or heavy vibe to them.

Track list:

1. Anemone - The Brian Jonestown Massacre

2. Beatrix - Cocteau Twins

3. How Soon Is Now? - The Smiths

4. Pedestal - Portishead

5. Blasphemous Rumors - Depeche Mode

6. Lullaby - The Cure

7. Teardrop - Massive Attack

8. New Dawn Fades - Joy Division

9. So Tired - Slowdive

10. Nonphenomenal Lineage - Grandaddy

(+more!)

[rainydawgradioblog]

My Clown Claude

Tucked away in the hidden levels of Pike Place lies a treasure chest of sorts, one you would experience only in dreams (or nightmares). A sweet elderly man welcomes you to The Antique Touch, where miles upon miles of vintage salt and pepper shakers smile both kindly and eerily. It is here I experienced love at first sight, an authentic Seattle meet cute. A lone clown, without a pepper shaker clown to call his own, drew me in. I immediately purchased this mystical joker and gave him a home on my windowsill, among my everlasting flowers and disco ball light. Named French by a british boy, Claude is the light that keeps me going during these rainy Seattle days. This blog post is dedicated to him, and the music he would listen to if his ears weren’t made of porcelain. Claude, if you’re alive and move around my room in the twilight hours, I hope you know I love you and your cute little burnt Sienna cheeks.

“Fifty-fifty Clown” - Cocteau Twins

Ignoring the Claude related pun, Cocteau Twins never fail to impress with their tantalizing rhythms and rhymes (on the rare occasion one can actually understand what Elizabeth Fraser is saying). “Fifty-fifty Clown” immediately draws listeners in, with a hypnotizing beat and a synth effect throughout the song that sounds as sweet as candy. I imagine Claude listening to this as he puts his makeup on before a night out on the town, or while driving late at night through the PNW. As for us living beings, “Fifty-fifty Clown” (and the majority of Cocteau Twins hits) is a song for dancing, crying, loving, or simply staring at the ceiling for an undisclosed amount of time.

“Nightcall” - Kavinsky

“Nightcall” begins with the sound of coins clinking together inside a telephone booth. As a person makes a call, a wolf howls in the back, and all at once Kavinsky’s atmosphere engulfs us with a sticky, tangy, mind bending groove. With the help of Lovefoxxx’s voice, this track creates a dreamy, almost supernatural world in the span of 4 minutes and 18 seconds. Claude would listen to this track as he was driving away from a late-night robbery gone wrong, with tears in his eyes and money in the backseat. You can listen to this track while you dance in your room and reminisce about your pre-pandemic life, as I do about eight times a week.

“Heavy Wave” - Motorama

Off Motorama’s 2015 album Poverty, “Heavy Wave” brings a taste of summer to the usual dark feels that surround Russian new wave/post punk music. Frontman Vladislav Parshin’s dulcet and phantom-like voice leaves listeners in a head bopping trance, while the accompanying bass line adds a steady beat throughout the entire ditty. Claude would listen to this song while he was folding his laundry on a breezy summer day, reminiscing about the lover he left behind in Italy. For non-clowns, this tune is perfect for the ephemeral moment in day when the sun is released from behind the grey Seattle clouds and everything feels a little more okay.

“Fade To Grey” - Visage

I discovered this song while watching the fantastic Xavier Dolan film, Laurence Anyways. I’ve linked the exact moment it’s used in the movie so folks can see how brilliant it is! What can I say? The buildup throughout “Fade To Grey” is genius, and the addition of French lyrics by Brigitte Arens makes it even more layered and spellbinding. Claude would listen to this song while at a badass 80s dance party, and you can listen to it whenever you want to feel like the main character.

“The Chauffeur” - Duran Duran

Wish I was exaggerating when I say I have listened to “The Chauffeur” 40 times a day this past week. I can’t place a finger on what my infatuation stems from- is it the otherworldly beat? The Ocarina riff? The quintessential lyrics? Or is it the fact that all three of these things make me feel like I’m floating in the astral plane each time I listen? Whatever it may be, this is easily my favorite song as of late, and I hope it can find a home on one of your playlists as well. Since Claude lives in my room, he would listen to this song from the top to the bottom of the day, most likely because I’ve forced him to.

“Reflektor” - Arcade Fire

A stunner from Montreal natives Arcade Fire, “Reflektor” features a french pre-chorus from Régine Chassagne and backing vocals from the one and only David Bowie. Accompanied by the heavy synth and rhythm throughout the entire song, this hit feels like a metallic grey spaceship from another world. There’s tons of interpretations to this song and instead of giving my own take, I encourage you all to give it a listen and make it mean whatever you want it to. Claude would listen to this song while on psychedelics as he saw his clown friend’s face melt away, and you can do the same! Cheers!

“Vanessa” - Grimes

Easily my favorite Grimes song, “Vanessa” is a dreamy ballad about the pains of loving. The repeated chorus reminds me of “Nobody” by Mitski, minus the emotional breakdown. Instead, Grimes seems to become more and more apathetic about their situation throughout the song, and their voice almost blends into the synth beat by the end. Claude would listen to this song while getting over a breakup, and you can listen to it while ignoring the fact that Grimes is married to Elon Musk (???).

“Mai” - Videoclub

Since Claude is a French name, it was only natural for me to feature a song from French teen duo Videoclub. Even for people sans Francais, “Mai” offers a candied background melody for any daily activity. My favorite line would have to be “Me nourrir uniquement de la nuit et de ses défauts, et de sa folie” which roughly translates to “Feed myself only of the night, of its flaws and of its madness.”, which is pure beauty. Claude would listen to this song on a train to Paris, and you can listen to it on the bus or light rail whilst staring out the window and pretending you’re in a music video.

“The Upstairs Room” - The Cure

A hidden B-side gem from The Cure, “The Upstairs Room” features the iconic Cure sound with classic Robert Smith lyrics. Fun, simple, sweet, “The Upstairs Room” is a reliable tune for any time of the day (or night). Claude would listen to this song in the middle of a midlife crisis as he shaves his head in his roommate’s bathroom. You can listen to this song while doing the same activity, or to fuel your motivation whilst writing term papers late at night that are due in twenty minutes (I can vouch from personal experience that it does work!).

“Melody (1983 Radio Version)” - Plustwo

This might possibly be one of the most addictive songs I have ever heard. From Italo-disco band Plustwo, “Melody” is a reliable hit for the times you feel nostalgic over Euroraves and disco balls. The four members' voices weave in and out of each other throughout the song in perfect harmony, never overlapping others or becoming too overbearing. Claude would listen to this song at three in the morning after seven cups of coffee, and you can listen to it to groove with friends at a safe six feet distance.

I hope Claude and I were able to introduce you to some new songs and I hope you enjoyed getting to know him through this post. If I ever catch Claude moving around in the wee hours of the night, Rainy Dawg Blawg will be the first to know.

Till next time! - Naomi Zamarripa

[somethingvaguetheband]

Artistic Statement

4-28-2020: 

Looking back at the band’s history, I am most happy with the band’s sound today. Right now. 

Our sound has evolved dramatically: we started out as an acoustic band (I first played acoustic guitar (!), then electric guitar), before switching to piano, then eventually synthesizers. And many bassists, backup singers, backup keyboardists, and guitarists came and went.  But me and Bolin were always the mainstays, even if there came times when we disagreed, we still worked well together, at least in my opinion. One of the reasons the band broke up for the first time in 2008, however, was because of personal differences between me and Bolin. We got back together and put out new music and played more shows. Then in 2009 we broke up again because I felt we had fulfilled everything we had set out to do (I wanted to do something piano-based, upbeat and shouty, with gang vocals--and we did all that) . And plus, we were fed up with each other again.  Some people have said it’s time to let go of the past. But it’s a mistake to say that you can’t care about the past and also about the future. Re-learning songs and improving them has been so exciting, yet challenging. I’m happy to be able to revisit the songs and add more flair or edit bad lyrics.  And plus, some things can’t stay dead. 

So perhaps this version of the band is a zombie.  People thought the band was dead, that I was retired, and all my haters celebrated. But I’m back. I am here. I thought about changing the band name upon its return. But if we were going to be playing SV songs, it would then be a cover band at that point. 

Nevertheless, it has always been exciting to perform Something Vague songs. 

I have fond memories of small shows and backyard parties with people dancing, sweaty, enjoying our songs.  The dark, heavy, dancy aspect of our band has always been my favorite.  Now with an updated, beefier sound, the band is actually more realized than I thought was possible in 2009. I am excited about the effects, noise, and tone that I’m able to produce.  Now with Bolin Jue only a memory for the band, I am actually free from the shackles that he has always placed on my creativity.  The emphasis is now on noise dance. I will never have to explain or apologize for a four-on-the-floor beat, as I often had to do.  It’s hard to put my finger on who would be the band’s biggest inspiration, but I am revisiting many artists/albums that shaped my formative years, those texts I’ve internalized, and responded to. The Blood Brothers, Late of the Pier, Moving Units, The Rapture, The Faint, The Presets. These artists inspired the music 2007-2009.  But now 11 years later, I’m inspired by more: Nine Inch Nails, Suicide, Nitzer Ebb, Sisters of Mercy, D.A.F., Cabaret Voltaire, Jawbreaker, Cocteau Twins.  And I’ve always been inspired by hardcore music. Here is a playlist of source material for the band.   Finding a meeting point for all my interests, and perhaps regulating left-field stuff to side projects is now the most interesting part for me. I love music. I love all kinds of music. Every single genre. Music is my religion. 

Coordinating a meeting between old and new influences, some things remain: the dance element. Nietzsche said “I cannot have faith in a God that doesn’t dance.” Are there any other life forms on earth that practice dancing? It is a uniquely human phenomenon.  Dancing is a free form of expression that anyone can and should do. It is liberating. There is something truly euphoric about closing your eyes and moving. I want to create experiences that allow people to connect to something, to let go. Dancing is the best therapy.  My songs have often met the criteria for “crancing” (crying and dancing). Sad lyrics paired with upbeat music. I’ve always found that combination interesting. Today, now that I’m not necessarily depressed anymore, the topics have shifted. My newer songs are based more on outrage at the hypocrisy of the political landscape. Today, I am looking outward more than inward, more than before.  I am eager to see where restarting the band will take me. I am happy with where it has taken me so far, all the wonderful memories I have of shows (the ones I can remember), and all the people I have met. I met my current fiancee because of my band, and today she plays backup synth and percussion in the band. Her name is Vanessa Severance.  The goal is to release an LP, at the very least another EP. The last one came out in 2009.  We released Danceaholics Anonymous (2007), Poptimism (2008), and Static in C Minor (2009). Hopefully this release will see the light of day in 2021, perhaps after 12 years without any new music from Something Vague. The title is tentatively “Fantasy Pieces.” 12 songs. One song for each year we were gone. The future can be beautiful if you let it.  We are only here for a limited time. Let’s make the most of it. 

Stay Tuned. I love you. 

Sincerely, 

Andy Darker

[fayewonglibrary]

Solitary Star (2005)

FAYE WONG ON LIVING LIFE ON HER TERMS

Walking Tall

She may be the queen of Canto-pop and a lauded actress, but Faye Wong is a reluctant superstar.  Clarence Tsui discovers her desire to protect her private life and her preference for the road less traveled.

Depending on who you listen to, Faye Wong is either the most audacious, innovative and angel-voiced singer Canto-pop has ever produced, or an indecorous, arrogant prima donna who throws tantrums at the smallest of inconveniences.  Her fans – a mass that includes university students, cultural critics and Wong’s own peers – subscribe to the former, while the latter is usually perpetuated by the unsympathetic tabloids, which are fatigued by her refusal to be chattering and chummy in public encounters, and gleefully consumed by their readers.

There’s one thing constituents of both camps would agree on, however:  that Wong is perhaps the most enigmatic Canto-pop icon of her generation.  Never one to tour television stations to appear on asinine celebrity game shows – now almost a pre-requisite for both established and prospective pop stars – Wong seldom reveals her true feelings.  Though she is at ease breaching musical barriers with every release, she’s also notoriously unforthcoming in explaining her work.  Not that she has endeared herself to a public that sees show-business figures as fair game.  Highly protective of her privacy, Wong rarely discloses her turbulent and well-documented love life willingly.

Her reticence is illustrated by the questions she chooses to dodge in interviews.  While content to respond to queries about her career as a musician and actress – albeit with economical and abstract answers – her reserve is rattled at the slightest mention of her family life.  Wong skipped only one question Post Magazine fired at her:  a query about whether she feels claustrophobic in Hong Kong and if there is more room in Beijing, her hometown and current place of abode, to develop her family life with actor boyfriend Li Ya Peng and daughter Jing Tong.  With her troubled marriage to mainland rock star Dou Wei having ended in acrimonious divorce, and her subsequent much-publicized, on-off fling with pop star Nicholas Tse Ting-fung, Wong is wary of being led down such lines of interrogation.

Still, the 35-year-old says she is comfortable distancing herself from the showbiz riff-raff.  “I never deliberately conjured a special image for myself – I just don’t think there’s a need to express my emotions too much.  Away from work, in my private time, I don’t need the participation of other people,” she says.  “I’ve always stressed I don’t care how other people see me – I believe everyone has the right to decide what they want in life…as long as I’m true to my own will, that’s enough.  Other people always think I’m very frosty – and I never wanted it to be like that.  [But] if you want to understand the real me – the songs best reflect who I really am.”

According to Wong, trying to explain her music is futile – and it shows in her half-hearted efforts to respond to queries about her work.  When asked what music interests her and what direction she would embark on if she were to make a new album, she says:  “I love different types of music and there’s no formula I follow in producing my records.  I try different things and work with different musicians.”  How much have you changed musically as an artist?  “I just wanted to do music I like – I don’t think to much about it.  People who have been to my concerts know my principles:  no dancing, no guest performers, no encores.  So I don’t think I’ve changed that much.”

She is more forthcoming when talking about her favorite artist.  “I like [the late] Teresa Teng Lai-kwan’s music the most,” says Wong.  “I loved listening to her records way back, when I was in Beijing, before I entered the music industry.  Her music influenced me deeply.”  Her choice of inspiration is surprising – traces of Teng, the Taiwanese queen of straightforward, stripped-down pop in the 1970s, are hardly pre-eminent in Wong’s diverse oeuvre.  Wong’s records have always stood at the fringes of orthodox Canto-pop, with every release an attempt to move away from the mainstream.  Even her detractors have had to concede that, in recent years, Wong’s music is hardly karaoke-friendly.  Far from churning out endless histrionic ballads ordinary punters could interpret on Minutes to Fame with ease, the chanteuse endeavors to wade through musical waters uncharted by Hong Kong’s songwriters – be it understated, folk-influenced numbers or psychedelic rock-outs.

Her distance from Hong Kong’s stifling pop scene has fostered a more alternative take on music aesthetics; her relocation back to Beijing relieved her of the strict conventions that dictate most Canto-pop productions.  Lush orchestrations and fiery rock ‘n’ roll are easily infused into Wong’s work – factors that are most likely absent from the bland, karaoke-driven music that fills Hong Kong’s radio playlists and MP3 collections.  “Bejing is my home, so comparatively speaking this place offers me more freedom to work and more inspiration,” she says.  “There are different ways of working in different places – the musicians I’ve worked with have all been very professional.  If I really had to make comparisons…let’s just say people in Hong Kong are more efficient at getting things done.”

It was the brutal efficiency of Hong Kong’s pop Svengalis that set Wong on her course as a Canto-pop icon.  Born in Beijing, Wong was supposed to pursue further studies in Australia after she joined her father in Hong Kong in 1987.  A chance encounter with a music-loving friend of her father, however, brought her to the door of renowned voice coach Tai Sze-chung.  Impressed with her remarkable voice, Tai introduced her to talent-spotter Alex Chan Siu-po, who was at the helm of Cinepoly Records.  Rechristened Shirley Wong Ching-man – Chan deemed her original name to unfashionable – the singer was an instant hit with the record-buying public, a well-received eponymous debut propelling her to third place in Commercial Radio’s best newcomer category.

Her trajectory would have remained on a similar course if she had stayed in Hong Kong and been content with balladeering on television shows.  However, Wong proved less predicable than the average pop idol.  After the success of her first three albums, she left for the United States and a sabbatical that saw her enroll in music classes.  Upon returning, she released Coming Home, ditched the Shirley – and later, the Ching-man – in preference of Faye, and reinvented herself as a kooky chanteuse with a taste for the offbeat.  Her frequent visits to Beijing brought her into contact with the city’s budding rock scene, the energy of which rubbed off on her music, lending her pop sound a rough-hewn edge – a standout during a time when Canto-pop was dictated by the cheesy, generic love songs of the Four Kings.

While Random Thoughts, with its fusion of karaoke-friendly pop and bustling rock, was seen as a watershed for Wong’s career, it was Impatience that sealed Wong’s transformation into a Canto-pop legend.  “Impatience is the album I am most satisfied with,” she says.  “That was the first time I completed an album I liked.  I worked with great producers and I loved every song on it.  I do things according to feelings and I do them when I think they feel right.  For me, Impatience is an album that just feels right.”  Impatience saw Wong’s dreamy pop extended further by British alternative pop combo Cocteau Twins, who wrote and produced tracks on the album.  Applauded by critics and fans alike, Impatience cemented Wong’s position as Canto-pop’s face of music credibility.

The ethereal qualities of Wong’s collaborations with Cocteau Twins also marked her out as an eccentric.  This characteristic was captured in Wong Kar-wai’s Chungking Express, in which Wong, in her first major film role, plays a fast-food employee who expresses her affection towards Tony Leung Chiu-wai by making uninvited visits to his flat while he is at work.  Her sporadic movie appearances afterwards – as a thief in Okinawa Rendezvous or a wistful lover in Leaving Me, Loving You - followed a similar trend.

Although some critics remain unconvinced and say Wong always plays herself in films, the gongs have kept coming:  She won Best Supporting Actress at Taiwan’s Golden Horse awards for her role in Chungking Express, while her performance as an impish princess in the romantic comedy Chinese Odyssey 2002 saw her crowned as Best Actress at the Hong Kong Film Critics’ Society Awards two years ago.  Not that Wong would claim to be as successful in film as she is in music.  “People who have seen me in films might think I know how to act, but I really don’t know much – I just did what directors told me to do,” she says.

She is reluctant to say which role has been her favorite.  “At the end of the day, music is what gives me the most satisfaction – I can do whatever I want in music and I feel fortunate my music is able to move people, and has become a part of growing up for some,” she adds.  “By comparison, I am still learning in film; I don’t have as much confidence in what I do there.”

Her modesty is an interesting counterpoint to the praise her directors have heaped upon her.  “People might think she she’s distracted but she prepared for her role well,” says director Wilson Yip Wai-shun, who worked with Wong on Leaving Me, Loving You.  “She might look very casual about what she does but she puts a lot of effort into her work.  She’s among the best in Hong Kong – she is very natural.  But yes, during shooting she kept saying she knew nothing about acting.”

Yip sees nothing wrong with Wong’s pensiveness in public.  “That’s what stars should be like,” he says.  It should work like that:  stars should never be that easy for anyone to get in touch with; the distance is crucial.  If I were to go to Kowloon City for a mean and she was there – that wouldn’t be what you expect from a star, would it?”

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SOURCE: POST MAGAZINE