LA CANZONE DEL GIORNO: UNTITLED 8 (Popplagið/The Pop Song)/SIGUR RÓS

Testo in Hopelandic (Vonlenska).

ALBUM: () (2002)

LA CANZONE DEL GIORNO: POLICY OF TRUTH/DEPECHE MODE

You had something to hide
Should have hidden it, shouldn't you
Now youre not satisfied
With what youre being put through

It's just time to pay the price
For not listening to advice
And deciding in your youth
On the policy of truth

Things could be so different now
It used to be so civilised
You will always wonder how
It could have been if youd only lied

It's too late to change events
It's time to face the consequence
For delivering the proof
In the policy of truth

Never again
Is what you swore
The time before
Never again
Is what you swore
The time before

Now youre standing there tongue tied
Youd better learn your lesson well
Hide what you have to hide
And tell what you have to tell

Youll see your problems multiplied
If you continually decide
To faithfully pursue
The policy of truth

Never again
Is what you swore
The time before
Never again
Is what you swore
The time before

ALBUM: VIOLATOR (1990)

LA CANZONE DEL GIORNO: YOU SPEAK MY LANGUAGE/MORPHINE

All around the world everywhere I go
No one understands me no one knows
What I'm trying to say
Everywhere I go no one understands me
They look at me when I talk to them
And they scratch their head
They go what's he trying to say
But you you speak my language
Yea yes
All around the world everywhere I go
No one understands me no one knows
What I'm trying to say
Even in my home town
My friends make me write it down
They look at me when I talk to them
And they shrug their shoulders
They go what's he talking about
But you you speak my language
Yes
Kabrula kaysay Brula Amal amala senda Kumahn Brendhaa
Kabrula kaysay Brula Amal amala senda
Kumahn Brendhaa
Brendhaa Yea you you speak my language
You you speak my language
Yea yes
Kabrula kaysay Brula Amal amala senda Kumahn Brendhaa
Kumahn Brendhaa
Kabrula kaysay Brula Amal amala senda Kumahn Brendhaa
Brendhaa
Kumahn Brendhaa
Brendhaa
You speak my language
Yea you speak my language
Yes

ALBUM: GOOD (1992)

LA CANZONE DEL GIORNO: ONCE UPON A TIME/SIMPLE MINDS

And you
Yes you speak to me tonight
And you say so, say so
That once upon a time
When love, love was a white dove
And hope, long live hope, could spin the whole world 'round
I'm talking east to west
I'm talking lost and found
Get up to the mountain top
I'm going to drop unto the ground
That's once upon a time
You raise me up when I know you're around
But God only knows, what God only knows
You lift me up and you spin me around
God only knows, but God only knows
That's time
Time looked around herself
Time got excited
That's when we all got started
Still I hear you, yes still you speak to me tonight
You say then how come out of love, is all this cruelty arising?
Well I said, look, well will you look at you, you're frightened
I see that you smile through weariness
But there is not much else enlightened
Well, that's a question down to time
You life me up when I know you're around
God only knows, God only knows
Still you raise me up when I know you're around
God only knows, God only knows
That's time

ALBUM: ONCE UPON A TIME (1985)

LA CANZONE DEL GIORNO: NUDE/RADIOHEAD

Diretto da HAMMER & TONGS

Don't get any big ideas
They're not gonna happen
You paint yourself white
And feel up with noise
But there'll be something missing

Now that you've found it, it's gone
Now that you feel it, you don't
You've gone off the rails

So don't get any big ideas
They're not going to happen
You'll go to hell for what your dirty mind is thinking

ALBUM: IN RAINBOWS (2007)

LA CANZONE DEL GIORNO: NEW RELIGION/DURAN DURAN

I've been now sauntering
Out and down the path sometime
Come on, it takes me nowhere, which I knew
Faces everywhere pulling grins and signs in things
Telling me not there, man, it's no go
Don't go there boy

I need a reason
I can't think without one now
Too much learning got to show
Call it treason
Maybe catch her, don't know how
Too many things, too much to know

Bring my timing in, seagulls gather on the wind
Lady screaming, lady leave me out
'Cause sometimes people stare
Coming down, electric chair
And steaming crowds they gather and they shout

Don't know why this evil bothers me
Take another chance boy, carry the fight,
You can take him if you're fast
So why is he trying to follow me?
Didn't I say if you're holding on
You'd be laughing at the last
How many reasons do they need?
I get along fine with them friends of mine
But you have to make a choice
I might just believe this time
You're singing out of tune but the beat's in time
And it's us who makes the noise

I'm talking for free, I can't stop myself,
It's a new religion
I've something to see, I can't help myself,
It's a new religion

Okay, my reasoning might be clouded by the sun
But someone sees the departmental lie
You know this peacetime jabbing fist in stabbing knife
Only get one look before you die

Don't know why this evil bothers me
Take another chance boy, carry the fight,
You can take him if you're fast
So why is he trying to follow me?
Didn't I say if you're holding on
You'd be laughing at the last
How many reasons do they need?
I get along fine with them friends of mine
But you have to make a choice
I might just believe this time
You're singing out of tune but the beat's in time
And it's us who makes the noise

I'm talking for free, I can't stop myself,
It's a new religion
I've something to see, I can't help myself,
It's a new religion

Gotta take pay the saints 'n sinners
In regulation hats 'n scarves 'n things
Walking in formation down the lane,
They carry their cross, make a church bell ring
Army majors pull a mean cool truth,
There lying in a swimming pool
Searching for the undeniable truth that
A man is just a fool

Don't know why this evil bothers me
Take another chance boy, carry the fight,
You can take him if you're fast
So why is he trying to follow me?
Didn't I say if you're holding on
You'd be laughing at the last
How many reasons do they need?
I get along fine with them friends of mine
But you have to make a choice
I might just believe this time
You're singing out of tune but the beat's in time
And it's us who makes the noise

I'm talking for free, I can't stop myself,
It's a new religion
I've something to see, I can't help myself,
It's a new religion

ALBUM: RIO (1982)

MUSICA: PLAYLIST/DICEMBRE

La playlist di Natale:


SPANISH METAL/KAISER CHIEFS

01. SIT AND WONDER/THE VERVE
(FORTH)
02. SPANISH METAL/KAISER CHIEFS
(OFF WITH THEIR HEADS)
03. JUNGLE DRUM/EMILIANA TORRINI
(ME AND ARMINI)
04. FUCK YOU, IT'S OVER/GLASVEGAS
[A SNOWFLAKE FELL (AND IT FELT LIKE A KISS)]
05. COME ON SANTA/THE RAVEONETTES
(WISHING YOU A RAVE CHRISTMAS)
06. THE REAL SNOW WHITE/THE CURE
(4:13 DREAM)
07. OLD ENOUGH/THE RACOUNTEURS
(CONSOLERS OF THE LONELY)
08. GLASS OF WATER/COLDPLAY
(PROSPEKT'S MARCH)
09. BLUE TULIP/OKKERVIL RIVER
(THE STAND INS)
10. I'M OUTTA TIME/OASIS
(DIG OUT YOUR SOUL)
11. GOODNIGHT, TRAVEL WELL/THE KILLERS
(DAY & AGE)
12. FOK/ÓLAFUR ARNALDS
(VARIATIONS OF STATIC)

LA CANZONE DEL GIORNO: SLIDE AWAY/OASIS

Slide away, and give it all you've got
My today, fell in from the top
I dream of you, and all the things you say
I wonder where you are now?

Hold me down, all the world's asleep
I need you now, you knocked me off my feet,
I dream of you, we talk of growing old
But you said please don't

Slide in baby, together we'll fly
I've tried praying, but I don't know what you're saying to me

Now that you're mine
We'll find a way
Of chasing the sun
Let me be the one, that shines with you
In the morning, I don't know what to do
Two of a kind
We'll find a way
To do what we've done
Let me be the one, that shines with you
And we can slide away, slide away, slide away

Slide away, and give it all you've got
My today, fell in from the top
I dream of you, and all the things you say
I wonder where you are now?

Slide in baby, together we'll fly
I've tried praying, and I know just what you're saying to me

Now that you're mine
We'll find a way
Of chasing the sun
Let me be the one that shines with you
In the morning when you don't know what to do
Two of a kind
We'll find a way
To do what we've done
Oh, let me be the one
That shines with you, and we can slide away

Slide away, slide away, slide away, slide away
(And I wanna try now, i wanna make you mine now)

I don't know, I don't care, all I know is you can take me there
(Slide away)
Take me there

ALBUM: DEFINITELY MAYBE (1994)

CONCERTI: OKKERVIL RIVER/CIRCOLO DEGLI ARTISTI/ROMA

BLUE TULIP

Will Sheff ha proprio l'aria del cantastorie: i capelli arruffati, gli occhiali da nerd che mette e toglie di continuo, la camicia bianca prima, ed una semplicissima t-shirt alla fine, e quell'aria svanita da menestrello, accentuata dal modo di tenere e suonare la chitarra, e dalla voce intensa e scanzonata allo stesso tempo, tanto da sembrare ubriaca. Gli Okkervil River fanno un rock sano, semplice, diretto, al punto che se chiudi gli occhi li vedi, quei paesaggi desolati del Texas: sì, proprio quelli che hai visto in decine, forse centinaia di road movie americani. Tuttavia non mancano spunti di grande originalità, come il sarcastico andamento country di Singer Songwriter, la forte malinconia di Blue Tulip, giusto per citare due esempi dall'ultimo album, The Stand Ins, nonchè momenti preziosi ripresi dai dischi precedenti, come una splendida For Real.
Un concerto autentico e genuino, che la cornice intima del Circolo degli Artisti, ed un bicchiere di birra in compagnia, rendono speciale.

OKKERVIL RIVER/CIRCOLO DEGLI ARTISTI/ROMA, 20 NOVEMBRE 2008

ASCOLTI: VARIATIONS OF STATIC/ÓLAFUR ARNALDS, DAY & AGE/THE KILLERS

FOK/ÓLAFUR ARNALDS

L'ho visto dal vivo appena qualche giorno fa, al Circolo degli Artisti, ed ora ascolto il nuovo disco di Ólafur Arnalds, Variations Of Static. Non si tratta di un vero album, ma di un EP di sole cinque tracce, più che sufficienti però per lasciare il segno. Abbandonati i criptici codici numerici utilizzati come titoli nel lavoro d'esordio, Eulogy For Evolution, il musicista islandese rispolvera la lingua madre, in ogni caso comunque affascinante e misteriosa, almeno al di fuori dell'isola dei ghiacci. I suoni sono dilatati ed a tratti ricordano le atmosfere dei connazionali Sigur Ròs, solo che invece di sublimarsi nelle liriche in falsetto, le singole note restano sospese in aria, come foglie in balia del vento del nord...
I Killers, invece, mi ricordano i Duran Duran. In verità, anche in tempi non sospetti, avevo definito Somebody Told Me una sorta di Rio del 2000, in quanto singolo perfetto, da ogni punto di vista, e destinato a durare nel tempo. E se nel frattempo il video di Rio è stata votato come il migliore di tutti i tempi attraverso un sondaggio promosso da MTV, i Killers si ripresentano con un album, il terzo della loro carriera, che pur non avendo assolutamente un suono marcatamente eighties, strizza l'occhio ai Duran Duran, specie a quelli più recenti, più "americani", e non è un caso che proprio la scorsa primavera, durante il tour americano di Simon Le Bon e compagni, Brandon Flowers sia salito sul palco per eseguire Planet Earth assieme a loro... Da segnalare, oltre al singolo Human, anche This Is Your Life, con quel basso disco che fa tanto new romantics, e soprattutto Goodnight, Travel Well; incisivo, intenso, il pezzo migliore del disco.

VARIATIONS OF STATIC/ÓLAFUR ARNALDS
DAY & AGE/THE KILLERS

CONCERTI: ÓLAFUR ARNALDS + MARTINA TOPLEY BIRD/CIRCOLO DEGLI ARTISTI/ROMA

Il Circolo degli Artisti è ancora mezzo vuoto quando le atmosfere artiche di Ólafur Arnalds , giovane musicista islandese che durante lo scorso tour europeo si è esibito con i Sigur Ròs, cominciano a diffondersi nell'aria. Le note minimali del piano si mescolano a quelle più ricche della sezione di archi, e si lasciano cullare dai quieti, quasi timidi ritmi elettronici, che solo occasionalmente si fanno più coraggiosi, intraprendenti, decisi. Nella sala c'è il silenzio che si addice ad un concerto sinfonico, e se non fosse per gli applausi, discreti ma convinti, che sottolineano la fine di ogni brano, sembrerebbe di assistere ad un'unica, eterea suite.
Martina Topley Bird, dal canto suo, presenta uno show spiritoso ed un po' buffo: somiglia a Betty Boop, col suo vestito rosso ed un fiore tra i capelli, e si muove tra il piano ed il microfono ancheggiando come fosse la protagonista di uno spettacolo di cabaret di un vecchio film americano, accompagnata da un poliedrico percussionista. Delle laconiche sonorità alla Mazzy Star di Anything non c'è rimasto molto, ma il pubblico, che nel frattempo si è fatto più numeroso, sembra divertirsi. Finn, chiunque fosse, non c'era.

ÓLAFUR ARNALDS + MARTINA TOPLEY BIRD/CIRCOLO DEGLI ARTISTI/ROMA, 14 NOVEMBRE 2008

MUSICA: ASCOLTI MULTIPLI #6

OLD ENOUGH/THE RACONTEURS

Che carino l'ultimo album di Emiliana Torrini, Me And Armini: un disco ispirato, maturo, che libera finalmente la musicista italo-islandese da riferimenti ingombranti (Björk su tutti) e ne rivela definitivamente la personalità artistica.
Le canzoni hanno il consueto tocco leggero, suadente, delicato (Big Jumps), e sovente si spingono oltre, alla ricerca di suoni più complessi (Birds, Gun). E la breve Jungle Drum è un piccolo gioiello di onomatopeica. Mi ha deluso invece il disco di esordio di Iglu And Hartly: ne avevo sentito parlare come di qualcosa sulla scia del revival dei MGMT, ed in effetti le atmosfere sono decisamente retrò, tra sonorità anni '80 e riferimenti alla Summer of Love, ma il cantato che strizza l'occhio al rap stanca presto. Mi rimane in testa l'azzeccato singolo In This City, ma nulla più. Niente male i Raconteurs di Jack White e Brendan Benson: Consolers Of The Lonely è un disco di rock assoluto, immediato, efficace. C'è dentro l'essenzialità dei White Stripes, arricchita nei suoni da fiati, banjo, violini (Old Enough), e la ricchezza delle influenze più classiche (Led Zeppelin), e funziona bene. Infine c'è il ritorno di Tracy Chapman: sinceramente tendevo a considerarla un po' noiosa, ma devo confessare che ho trovato Our Bright Future davvero piacevole, mentre lo ascoltavo in macchina durante una serata di pioggia. I toni sono sempre gentili e pacati, quasi confidenziali ma mai tediosi, e l'album scorre via discreto ma gradevole. Ora sono davvero curioso di vederla dal vivo a fine mese.

ME AND ARMINI/EMILIANA TORRINI
& THEN BOOM//IGLU AND HARTLY
CONSOLERS OF THE LONELY/THE RACONTEURS
OUR BRIGHT FUTURE/TRACY CHAPMAN