Relief: A Strippers Classic

This is one of my all time favorite tracks and when I first heard, I really think I listened to it about eighteen times straight. I put it on repeat and my ears drank it in and picked it apart. The title is curious but the music is so serious, so good, so damn delicious. The name of the cut is Relief: A Strippers Classic and it's by the one and only Me'Shell Ndegeocello. It's off of her 2007 release entitled The World Has Made Me The Man of My Dreams and the song is Relief: A Stripper Classic and it just rocks.

It's two songs in one really. The first part of the equation, act one is hot, steamy, vulnerable, and so fucking sexy. The music is hard, the guitar along with the percussion makes the first part of this song steamy, almost confining, like you can't get away, not that you would want to. MeShells whispering just add to the intensity of the track. When she says lines like Here in the dark/Only God can see everything we do and Will you be there/When the drugs run out? just heightens the dark side of things. Act two of the track brings redemption and light. It's so pretty and open, the biting guitar is gone and instead replaced by a lilting piano and an emphatic bassline that smooths the track right out. The overriding question in act two is Will you comfort me?. Well, will you?

This is an amazing track by an amazing artist and it will always remain of my all time favorite songs. Is it something a stripper can work the pole too, I doubt it. Is it something that could make you listen to it at least eightteen times straight? If you're anything like me then absolutely. Enjoy!

House of The Blue Danube

When I first heard this album and this song I thought it was amazing. The iconic Malcolm McLaren back in the studio, playing around and creating some incredible music as he usually did. I thought then and still think today that Waltz Darling was and is ahead of it's time. In my opinion, on your big boys speakers this song, House of The Blue Danube and the others on this album will blow you away. Now the reason I bought this CD back in the day was two fold. A, it was Malcolm McLaren and B, it was produced by the incomporable Trevor Horn. If you ever bopped your head or grooved to any song by The Art of Noise then you were listening to a Trevor Horn production. Needless to say I am a huge Trevor Horn fan.

What makes Danube so amazing though, besides Bootsy Collins ferociously rugged bassline is what Trevor Horn did, something a lot of producers today couldn't pull off. He was able to, at the constant behest of Malcolm to incorporate Johann Strauss' 3/4 timed classical piece into Malcolm's 4/4 timed pop music. This is akin to fitting an elephant into a Volkswagen Beetle with the seats still in the car. Danube is a funky instrumental track and the first track off of Malcolm's 1989 release. It pretty much set the table for what you were going to hear the rest of th way, splashes of classical music giving Waltz Darling a flourish and in my opinion, a timeless quality.

This album has remained a favorite in my collection and I have told damn near everyone I know about it, now I'm telling you. Listen to House of the Blue Danube and if you don't agree with my "timeless" assessment, then at least admit that it's funky. Enjoy!

Asleep

This movie sucked, there I said it. And I have a hard time taking anyone seriously who calls themselves liking Sucker Punch, yes it was THAT bad. It's ONE saving grace (and I mean it's ONLY one) was the music. Whoever was behind the music of this movie deserves huge kudos because they've recreated magic. The songs are not original compisitions, they are all remakes but they have been remade in such amazing ways, especially this song.

It's Asleep, originally done by The Smiths and redone by Emily Browning for Sucker Punch. When I first heard the original song it shook me. Such a beautiful and profoundly haunting song about suicide and the WANT to go. Emily's version, not nearly as haunting as the original but what the remake has is unabashed beauty. The original was just a piano melody behind Morrisey's vocals but in this verion there's full on orchestration. Where the original painted a bleak picture, this version makes it seem like the suns come out to play. While the sentiment of the lyrics is ruined, the music is simply lovely.

This song is hitting me particulary hard right now (going through some personal stuff) but I had to share it. I think people should hear it and hopefully, what I am dealing with gets to play in the sun for a little while longer. Please?

Invitation

I got my hands on this soundtrack very recently as I am really looking forward to the movie. Immediately this piece jumped out at me and won't leave me alone. I can't stop listening to it, it's haunting. The cut is called Invitation off of the Prometheus soundtrack composed by the very talented Marc Streitenfeld. This track is lush, moving, rich, and simply beautiful. I am really looking forward to the visuals that this music accompanies Ridley Scott's new film.

Ridley and Marc have worked together once before on Ridley's great film Body of Lies. The music on that film was intense, the perfect marriage to the movies images thus it only stands to reason why Ridley would pick Marc to score this movie. The one movie Alien fans worldwide have been waiting for since the movie landed in theaters back in 1979. The rest of the score was good, I especially like A Planet, Going In, and Marc's take on Jerry Goldsmiths original Alien theme on Friend From The Past.

But Invitation is the stand out to me. Take a listen and see if you agree. Enjoy!

Lovesong

I was looking for the perfect Adele song to blog. The one that touched my heart, my soul, and mind. She has some incredible songs and her voice wrapped around those lyrics are gut wrenching. I understand why she's such a big hit with women but damn if this song didn't almost knock me out of my chair when I heard it. The song is Lovesong off of her 21 album and it's absolutely amazing. Not for the music though the musicianship is exquisite. No, the reason this song hit me so hard is because I know women who feel like this.

Women who feel like when they get around that certain person, be they male or female they feel right, whole, beautiful, perfect. When I hear Adele sing However far away/I will always love you/However long I stay/I will always love you/whatever words I say/I will always love you I am immediately brought back to those conversations I had where distance is spoken about with no concern, where trust is spoken about passionately, and where love is such a part of the conversation it's like a third party.

This is my favorite Adele song and when I hear it, it often goes on repeat just so I can recall those conversations again and again.

Devil's Halo

Whenever I get contemplative or melancholy, this is the first song that comes to mind. It's by the amazingly talented Me'Shell NdegeOcello and it's entitled Devil's Halo. Now I've been a fan of Me'Shells music since her first commercial release Plantation Lullabies and this entry marks her second visit to my blog. Musically, there is nothing Me'Shell can't do. Phenomenal bassist, singer, songwriter, she has for all the tools and this tune is a true testament to her talents. This song is off her last release of the same title and Devil's Halo is an exceptional album and for me this song is just one of the standouts on it.

First off it's an instrumental track that harkens back to another album of hers entitled Bitter. Devil's Halo is just so damn....beautiful. So much so that there's really nothing left for me to say. Therefore I invite you to enjoy Me'Shells Devil's Halo. Listen close and maybe next time, when you get contemplative or melancholy, this song will come to mind for you like it does for me.

Enjoy!