Bon Vendredi to one and all. I am absolutely worn out this week - i'm not tired/sleepy, I am just tired exhausted need to recooperate. I really got into the swing of things with work this week, but at the cost of ever sitting down for a minute. Still, I am so looking forward to some much needed rest and relaxation this very weekend. Which is right here right now. Huzzah for the weekender inventor. Darren is doing his yummy hip enhancing (and hips don't lie) beef lasagne this weekend and I look forward to having him inside me. Er, I mean it. It inside me. Then we are going to have a mammoth lounging session catchingup on Shameless and Lost, while I flick through a whole bunch of magazines i've yet to read (including the soon to feature me new look Gay Times!) Plus I changed the bed sheets this morning - i love new bed sheets day. It always seems to crisp and luxurious when you get into it of the night. Which was quite appalling English but what are you going to do. Moving the mouse cursor backwards to delete and change is such an effort. OH! I tell you what else was an effort today... not throwing up on the way to work when some cheap skank walking alongside me answered her phone and after hello, the first words she spaketh were "oh for fucks sake, it was not a fanny fart". And we are talking front bum fanny here not rear end like what it is in America, etc. I mean honestly, who knew such things existed (though she did have a wicked camels toe) and secondly, it's not really what one wants to hear when one is eating a museli bar for breakfast, is it? And it definitely put me off the offer of a Cadbury's Creme Egg at lunchtime. Spew! PS ~ I'm the size of a small house at the moment, so must type faster to work off some excess calories...
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THE A-LIST ACTS WITH B-LIST SINGLES:
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Yes, i'm back to harping on about how rubbish singles choices often are when made by the record company. Though probably sometimes the band as well, no doubt. Not the band No Doubt that is, it was just an expression. But sometimes rubbish singles choices are saved by ooo kiss me and roger me twice level b-sides (ie, very good). Let's look at a couple of acts I have the passions for (did you know that soap is being cancelled?! I am agog, I am aghast) - one musically and visually, and the other, well obviously it's just the music...
~ The Feeling, Rose: I mean, yes there is hardly any filler on their album which means they could have released something much more marvelous for Valentines Day. I Want You Now practically sizzled with lust and harmonised longing, while Strange could have appealed to everyone who didn't have a date (that was mean). Both better songs commercially and after all Rose is currently languishing at 38. Granted it is from a multi platinum selling album, but 38? Luckily I have been utterly seduced by the studio version of Fill My Little Fanfare which opens their live shows and is a cunning stunt of a song, which couldn't sound any more Beach Boys-esque if Brian Wilson were in the house. Dan's original version of Sewn (demo) is still charming in a rough round the edges way (RAR) and an acoustic version of Rose almost made me forget what an amazing album track but rubbish single it is. So The Feeling are forgiven. As long as they don't spend too long recording their second album (Maroon 5, I'm glaring at you!)
~ Magic Numbers, This Is A Song: My initial feeling was that this wasn't a great choice for single, but i have proved myself wrong because it is indeed very good, if nothing new from my fave richard bacon insultees. However, the b-side Might As Well Live In My Head just proves their ability to knock out an amazingly catchy tune quicker than they can snarfle down a plate of low fat donuts. I love the way they can put bitter sweet lyrics to such uptempo tunes that Ruthiepoos and I worship so much in the summer festivals. It just makes me want to falalalala all weekend long!
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LINK: Buy Rose
LINK: Buy This Is A Song
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THE GIRLS I IGNORED THAT I AM NOW FLIRTING WITH:
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All of a sudden there is a spunkage of girls returning to the pop scene with songs that are not too bad actually. For some reason at some point I made a conscious decision that actually having let me down with follow up material, I wasn't going to bother again with any of the three Sheilas below. But hey, here I am declaring them on my radar again - on a trial basis mind you. Lets not get too generous...
~ Natasha Bedingfield, I Wanna Have Your Babies: Her forthcoming album cover looks like something Sophie Ellis Bextor might poo out when she is bored, yet once again la Nat has won me over with her lead off single. First time round it was Single which suggested she was going to be a bit of a funky dance diva, but then she wasn't and god forbid I look for or reward diversity so I buggered off. However, this song, I do quite like. It's a bit twee, but it has a lovely singalong quality to it and the title is nothing if not unique. So she scores a "i'm mildly interested to see what the album will be like" from me and I move onto the next lass...
~ Joss Stone, Tell Me About It: I generally have quite loathed the stone. At first she was all cover versions and annoying. Then she was just annoying with that "you had me you lost me you found me, you sold me you made me messing with my mind" cack, which actually (don't tell Ruthiepoos) I secretly like. Then she did the whole "oh those first two albums aren't really me - this is me" thing for this single which is a bit of a slap in the knickers to all those people who bought her first albums isn't it? And to be honest, I can't tell the difference so I must be getting more tolerant in my old age as I didn't immediately kick this to the curb. I am getting marvelous!
~ Macy Gray, Finally Make Me Happy: Now this i love! It's so Macy doing something new but still reminding us of how good Still and I Try were. It's not that i shut Macy out of my life, more like I lost track of her and her ego and her hair with it's own post/zipcode but I am glad to have her back. For coffee and a bagel at least. I think it's fair to say that this song struts along with attitude, pep mixed with a certain charm that is hard to resist. I'm scared to rave too much about it incase Ella judges me ;) It does go on a bit at the end though!
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LINK: you may find songs from these artists at other sites - particularly here, here and here
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THE OBSESSIVE COMPULSIVE:
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I thought maybe my obsession with all things Wicked would be over by now. Or at least have calmed down a little bit. It hasn't. And it seems just 5 months after opening, most of Britain has seen it too - from celebs like half of Girls Aloud, Gary Barlow, William Young, the History Boys to regular theatre goers, it's racked up a whopping £12.5 million in box office receipts (though paid out a corking £50,000 a week to Idina Menzel) and continues to have only crap seats available for ages. And Bev from Corrie is now going to play Madam Morrible. Lumme! It's the music that tells the story that still has me coming back for me everytime. I just discovered some piano only versions of the songs that are just so intricate and lovely, it's hard not to fall in love with this outstanding piece of work all over again. Plus it motivates me to keep practising piano so I can sound as amazing as this. As Long As You're Mine sounds so yearning and powerful as a piano solo, and Popular just sounds positively tingly. So, adding to the list of things i'm obsessed with (Lois and Clark; Beauty and The Beast; Love, Actually; Harry Potter) means I have more stuff to rotate revisiting on a regular basis. When will i get time for new stuff?!?!?!
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LINK: Wicked the musical website
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QUICK BITZ/BLOG WATCH:
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~ only one today. The last four minutes of Season four of Shameless were stunningly done and a joy for any take that fan. Sure it was a "shameless" rip off of this, but who cares. I'm going to watch it all over again. Here.
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Coming tomorrow ~ some swedish dudes, some fashion stuff, and news on the last zapping post as we know it. Sob, etc.