Artist of the Week: Tim Buckley

When I first found out that Tim was Jeff's father, my brain freaking exploded. At the time, I only had one of his songs but immediately after finding out, I started digging deeper into his music. The reason why he's artist of the week is because I've downloaded about 5 more songs from him this week and they have all been on repeat ever since, so he's been present a lot in my life for the last 7 days.

Tim is considered a folk god in his secluded fan base. Not many people know about him (like father, like son) and every time I listen to him I ask myself, "Why the hell not?!" It could be the fact that his songs are not really mainstream, or that he chose not to be over-exposed when he was alive. Either way, you're in a different world when you're listening to one of his songs. Whenever I hear "Happy Time" I always envision myself driving down PCH with the windows down. It's definitely a great song for a soundtrack. But my favorite has got to be "Song to the Siren". I heard This Mortal Coil's cover of it first a while back, but had no idea that Tim had written it so many years ago. When I found out, I immediately went looking for the original, and was almost brought to tears. It is without a doubt, one of the most beautiful songs I've ever heard. And what's better, it's super easy to play on the guitar, once again proving my theory that the best songs are the simplest.

I can't help but compare Tim to his son (and Jeff said many times that he hated that) but it is pretty uncanny:

• Both were musicians
• Both were not hugely popular
• Both became more famous after their deaths
• Both died young

The list goes on and on really. But in terms of just Tim, he really was a folk legend, taken too soon and with so much more beautiful music to write.

Song of the day: Morning Glory- Tim Buckley

Until next time,

Sary

Movie of the Week: Manhattan Murder Mystery

So I came across this movie late one night and never got to finish it. It was so funny and intriguing I had to download it. The movie is about Larry (Woody Allen) and Carol Lipton (Diane Keaton) who one night happen to go to their next-door neighbors' house, whom they've never met before, for drinks. The next day they come home to realize the neighbor's wife has died of a heart attack, the only problem is that the husband seems a little too perky and apathetic about the fact that his wife just died. Always one to jump to conclusions, Carol immediately starts to play around with her suspicion that her neighbor killed his wife. Encouraged by her also imaginative friend Ted, Carol begins to snoop around the neighbor's apartment, pulling at straws really, and begins to realize that there might be more truth to her theory than she realized. The movie further develops as Carol and Ted begin to run around New York City, trying to find answers, only to find that every place they go deals them more questions.

What makes this movie so entertaining, apart from the murder mystery dynamic, is the comedic timing between Allen and Keaton. Allen's character has no desire whatsoever to pursue Carol's crack-pot ideas, and so his unwillingness and sarcasm lends to some very funny interactions between the two. In classic Woody Allen fashion, the movie has a very conversational atmosphere, which makes it seems like the actors aren't acting at all, which is an element I love in movies. The audience thinks throughout the entire movie that everything is just a misunderstanding, that Larry and Carol will finally confront the neighbor and that he will divulge that Helen was just his niece, that his wife had a twin, etc. (this will all make more sense when you watch the movie), but it is quite a pleasant surprise when the audience realizes that Carol's theories weren't so far-fetched after all. I highly recommend this movie to anyone who likes a good mystery and a good laugh to distract us from the garbage that Hollywood today calls "a comedy film", but also to witness a great reunion between Woody Allen and Diane Keaton since "Annie Hall".

Song of the day: "Sing Sing Sing"- Benny Goodman and his Orchestra

Until next time,

Sary

we get a little crazy

Crazy, crazy times. I've been consumed by school recently and haven't had the chance to do a EOW (event of the week). Tomorrow I will make up for lost times and do two! Or maybe one tomorrow and one Friday. Either way, you will get a double dosage this week. I apologize!

Song of the day: Livin' on the Edge- Aerosmith

Until next time,

Sary

Bad timing!

So I started to write my "Movie of the Week" entry a few minutes ago and realized I just couldn't do it for two reasons: my mind is completely somewhere else and I need to get a head start on studying for my test tomorrow....probably the reason why my mind is completely somewhere else haha. I know, I know, I had all weekend to do this and to study but as usual procrastination got the best of me. I'll write it on Thursday I promise! On another note, I am so excited because my mom came home last night and brought me a lot of cool stuff, not to mention, almost an entirely new wardrobe! I'll be candid right now- most of what I asked her for came from inspiration from Liv Tyler....GOSH everything she wears is just too ridiculously cute. Here's my inspired look for today:

Comfortable and simple, don't want to go overboard on the first day :)

Song of the day: Closer- Kings of Leon

Until next time,

Sary

setback

I've been discouraged in the last few days but I'm going to get back on track today. I had every intention of waiting until Monday, but I have to suck it and just go for it, enough with the bullshit. The next few days will be pretty hectic, but expect another "of the week" thing this weekend. I hope you have a wonderful day!

Song of the day: Hey That's No Way to Say Goodbye- Lemonheads ft. Liv Tyler

Until next time,

Sary

Artist of the Week: Freddie Mercury

I've been in love with this man for quite some time now (yes, I know he was gay). I think we've all known about or at least heard of Queen since we were kids, it's hard to remember a time when I didn't. But it wasn't until I was about 17 when I really started getting into their music. More than anything, I was just completely taken by Freddie's voice. In my opinion, the best singer of any band in the 20th century, and I know that's a huge statement, but I really can't see anyone even measuring up to his talent. I think one of the best examples of his range is in "Who Wants to Live Forever", towards the middle of the song he just belts that line "and we can loooove forever!" haha I think it's an E5 but I'm not sure. In any case, an amazing singer with a range of like, 6 octaves I think.

To me however, there is something that surpasses even his voice: his ability as a performer. I'll make a bold statement again: the best performer of the 20th century. I think that statement might rattle people a bit more haha. "But Sarynelli, what about Michael Jackson?!" I'll be the first to tell you that Michael Jackson was the most talented and influential artist in the last 100 years. The songs that he wrote were indescribable, and granted he touched millions of people's lives. And on stage, he was a force to be reckoned with. But when Freddie got on stage, something magical happened. What I notice the most and what I love the most is the passion with which he sings. In every single performance you know he is giving it his all, like it were the last performance of his life. That, and the ability to connect with the audience; not only that, but encourage them and get them riled up! There was just so much energy bursting from him every time he got on stage. One of the best examples was when Queen did Live Aid, I think it must have been '85 or '86. It looked like there were 100,000 people there and he never showed one sign of being nervous. I think he thrived on it actually. The more people, the better the show.

In any case, when I see a concert or a band or artist performing, it takes a lot to captivate me. The difference between a good and an amazing performance is that a good performance keeps you entertained for however long a song is; an amazing performance leaves you awestruck and thinking "What the hell just happened there?". Not only that, but you keep thinking about it way after the song is over. Freddie is one of the few performers who does that to me every time. With his fist-pumping energy and his show stopping high notes, to me, there will never be another performer like Freddie Mercury.

Song of the day: Save Me- Queen

Until next time

Sary

We are the champions...

my frieeendss!!

So I was going to do Artist of the Week today but with the orgy of a celebration that I've been taking part in today because of the World Cup, I had to share my thoughts on the subject.

SPAIN. WON.

WE. WON.

Words cannot express how happy I am right now. It's been a longtime coming, but we finally did it. I've been with them since the beginning...since before the beginning actually. I think they're the first team ever to win the Euro Cup and the World Cup consecutively. In any case, no one deserved it more than they did. And I swear I'm not making this up and I'm not trying to get all superstitious, but since the World Cup started I had this feeling, I just knew they were going to win. And it was just my fool's hope because they were my favorite team to win, I genuinely felt like they were going to make it to the end; there was just never a doubt in my mind. Even when they went up against Germany in the semi-finals, I wasn't worried. Something told me they would make it.

And I'll be frank with you right now: I fucking DESERVED that win. Because every single team I've supported in every other sport this year has lost. Colts? Lost. Ducks? Lost. Celtics? MISERABLE loss. Costa Rica didn't even qualify for the World Cup and we lost against USA in possibly the most heart-wrenching game I've ever witnessed. Needless to say, this has not been a good year in sports for me haha. But you know, if it meant that I would be rejoicing today for my favorite soccer team and for the biggest sporting event in the world, it was all worth it. Victory never felt sweeter.

And might I add just before I go, that my future husband, the amazing Cesc Fabregas assisted the winning goal? :D Yeah, he's that good.

Song of the day: Metropol 47- Mark Kozelek

Until next time,

Sary

on my own

Quite a lot has happened. First of all, Superman Returns just came on T.V. haha! Apart from that, I'm trying out this new diet (let's hope it works), Spain is going to the World Cup final, Andrew got an ear infection, and I downloaded a bunch of recipes to try out now that I'm home alone and have to fend for myself. This weekend should be great and I want to try and finish my drawing, I haven't worked on it for a while. Anyways, expect another " of the week" thing this weekend!

Song of the day: From the Morning- Nick Drake

Until next time,

Sary

Breaking and entering

I think someone is trying to break into my house right now...not good.

I'm watching a little birdie take a bath from my window! My window is right next to the roof of our terrace and there's a little dent in two of the shingles where water collects, so he's just splashing around. So cute.

So it's 9 a.m. and I have school at 2:15. I have quite a lot of stuff to do during the week and right now I'm just trying to get organized and assign days to do them. But it's a beautiful morning (well it was, now it's getting cloudy) and I thought I'd write a little.

My mom is bringing me back so much stuff from California, I'm so excited! Clothes, books, movies, the essentials really. On another note, and I know I've mentioned this before, but I was reading some of my first posts on my blog and god, I was so annoying hahah. The funny thing is that I thought I was totally normal! I've never thought I was really cool as a teenager even when I was a teenager, but at least I thought I was normal. It turns out I wasn't even that haha. Some of the stuff I write about is just like, "Really? REALLY?"

Some of the posts were really nice though, days I had completely forgotten about and instances that I thought were part of other days that were really part of the same day. Ugh, memories, memories. Anywho, I must download some music soon. I haven't downloaded anything in about a week. I should probably go do that now that I have some time to kill before I get ready.

Whoever you are, have a wonderful day!

Song of the day: Tenderness- General Public

Until next time

Sary

Album of the Week: Only by the Night

Ok so this is the first weekly event thingy on my blog, and I've decided to go with Album of the Week so let's get to it!

Alright, I've known about this band for about 3 years now. I first heard them at school while setting up the cameras for a production and they had some music playing in the background to keep us entertained while we worked. I remember liking them immediately and asking someone who the band was. Their response: Kings of Leon.

Fast forward to about a year and a half later, "Only by the Night" is a best-selling album on iTunes and on the Billboard Top 100. It's one of those phenomenons where a band comes out of nowhere and then overnight everyone is talking about them. I've had some songs from this album for a while now but in the past two weeks I've been sort of obsessed with Kings of Leon (I have no idea why) and decided to download the remaining songs that I didn't have from the album. Let's just say that it has been on repeat for about a week now.

I don't know what it is about this album in particular, and a lot of die-hard KOL fans would agree that it is too mainstream and prefer "Because of the Times" but there is something about the songs on this album that is so catchy (and yes, dare I say it "mainstream") and yet so freaking original, and that's a rare find. There were times when I found myself saying "Woah, woah, what the hell was that?" and rewinding the song because I was so taken back by a riff or a chord or just felt something weird. I don't know if you've ever experienced that when you hear a really good song for the first time.

One of the many things that I love about Kings of Leon is their prominent bass line in almost every song. The bass and bass players are most of the time so passive in bands, you can barely tell they're playing. Every once in a while you find a genius (like Flea from the Chili Peppers) but like I said, most of the time the bass just blends into the background. The Kings of Leon bassist, Jared Followill, is an amazing bassist and I'm not sure how their writing process goes but I'm sure he writes his own bass line. Something that really strikes me is that the bass has such a strong influence in almost all of their songs, a lot of times even more than the guitar, and "Only by the Night" takes full advantage of that. "17" and "Manhattan" in particular have amazing bass lines and I often found myself playing air bass instead of air guitar.

The album of course has the songs that most of us know from their constant air-time on the radio: "Sex on Fire", "Use Somebody", and "Notion". They are great to sing along to and are the most mainstream of all the songs because they were, of course, the three singles off the album. But two of my favorite songs off the album that are seriously underrated are "Cold Desert" and "Revelry". They are two songs that are the more chilled-out from the group (surprise, surprise) and have amazing hooks. I don't know, for me, song should always take you somewhere, whether it's somewhere you've already been, somewhere you want to go, somewhere where you have no idea where you are. Those two songs take me somewhere, and it's a really good place. The funny thing is that, for all its magic and mastery, "Cold Desert" uses 4 main chords throughout the whole song, and "Revelry" uses about 3 throughout. Some of the greatest songs ever written are the easiest and simplest to play history has shown us, and "Only by the Night", a groundbreaking album in my opinion, stays in the chord of E for most of its duration. I think that's saying something all on its own.

All in all, "Only by the Night" is something spectacular, I don't care how mainstream you think it is. Songs are supposed to make us feel; what that feeling is is up to you. This album is not just something that appeals to the masses, but leaves you with a feeling of awe and even admiration. An album that millions like is one thing. An album that millions like and feel a strong connection to is another. That's what this album is for me, and I can't wait for their fifth to see what else they throw our way.

Song of the day: Revelry- Kings of Leon

Until next time

Sary

rainy days and mondays

So I'm alone in the house for the next 3 weeks! It's great during the day, but at night I have to admit that it's kinda scary. Paranoia definitely sinks in. But I don't know, it will be weird just being alone in the house all day. Upside is I can do whatever I want, downside is I have to cook everything haha. We'll see how it goes. I'll do the event of the week thing tomorrow for sure, I have to decide whether it's going to be album, artist or movie. I should probably pick the thing that has been the most prevalent in the last week. Hmm....

Song of the day: Blue Eyes- Cary Brothers

Until next time

Sary