No. I’ve actually been living my life for a while rather than noting things of interest. But it’s time to set the record “straight”! I made a sort of New Year’s Resolution at the beginning of the month, which was to overcome all past obstacles and unfinished targets! I’ve been relatively amazing at seeing it through, and some awesome things are happening in my life right now as a result of this. It’s such a relief to know that even though I’m not physically my best at the moment, a whole host of worries have been taken off my mind! I really can’t wait for this year’s Film Festival to start! I’m hoping to expand my social circle and finally find someone or maybe even some people to enjoy and share these amazing and rare films with. I’ve gotten into a reading pattern, which I appreciate. I just ordered two new books online (and one graphic novel)! Musically, the band is still non-existent, but The Wise One has mentioned it for the first time in 4 months so I’m not giving up. I’ve been writing down lots of ideas for songs that I want to share with you all. I can’t believe I’m writing this blog post at 5 o’clock in the morning, but we just bought a Tassimo machine and I’ve had two cappuccinos tonight so I’m a tiny little bit alright okay so totally buzzing right now that I can’t sleep but the sugar and caffeine is slowly being spent and soon…..I……will……..fall…..zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz…
Below, you’re about to hear the first ever snippet of You and I (if you’re kind enough to press play). I don’t know if I should be posting this so soon… for one, it’s still in the early demo stages (albeit not as early as the original preview). But we are supposed to be performing live in two weeks, so to hell with it!
This is a quote from a blog entry I posted in March regarding t.A.T.u.’s break-up:
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What would I like to see? How about a lifetime honour that’s not from MTV Russia: let them perform during the Eurovision…
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And this is what was posted on Thursday (that I just read):
TATu who represented Russia at the 2003 Eurovision Song Contest have announced that they will perform at the first 2009 Eurovision song Contest semi final on Tuesday of next week.
And now I’m experiencing that familiar crash I get after finding out about new t.A.T.u. projects. That, “DMY, you know this won’t be as good as you’re picturing it.” Crash! But you see, the first time t.A.T.u. were on Eurovision, I didn’t properly savour the experience. I barely knew them, and from what I can remember thinking back, all the press thought they were going to do something scandalous during their performance. So I remember finally seeing it and being like, “Wow, Russian girls frolicking on stage – shocker! And they were never heard from again!”
I literally cannot even think straight enough to post this, I’m so consumed with a mixture of excitement and anxiousness that I won’t be able to sleep tonight! And the thing of it is, it’s not even been officially confirmed by EBU! Ack, I need a life; preferably that of someone in Spain who’s won £110 million!
Firstly, the subdued breakup of t.A.T.u. was officially announced on their blog. Out of the ashes came two new projects, neither connected, but both potentially exciting.
What to say… there’s still a lot left unfinished, and the fans have been assured closure, but I’m skeptical as to whether the majority of what’s been promised will surface in the coming months. It may be a good year before we hear an official announcement regarding their films release. What would I like to see? How about a lifetime honour that’s not from MTV Russia: let them perform during the Eurovision halftime-show in Moscow (I know it’s hardly the Superbowl, but I don’t know what else to call that typically boring part when you’re supposed to start televoting). Apparently the spot’s already been taken by a Cirque du Soleil performance, but I think that harks back to my earlier statement of this interval being typically boring. Aqua got to perform in the 2001 Contest shortly before their breakup, it should only be fair as one of Russia’s most profitable exports they grant them this honour! Now, whether or not t.A.T.u. would actually accept it, is another question.
Secondly, Amanda Bynes has a new comedy Pilot in the works! “Canned” sees Amanda take on the role of newly-unemployed Sarabeth, adjusting the life outside the workplace along with her other friends after being exploited by their boss. What I’d like to see? The report says the character’s a naïve midwesterner – so how about letting Amanda show off her versatility and give her a little accent!
If you don’t know me, I’m what you would call an Amanda Bynes fanatic. I used to run the only British website about her and have been a fan since 2001. She’s lately had somewhat of a career dry-spot, but rather than bitching about it, I’ve appreciated seeing her taking time off and evaluating things in her life (let’s just brush over those several months she spent with Paris Hilton’s future husband). She’s working on a new script with Andy Fickman, the director of her most successful lead-role film “She’s The Man”, and a new fashion line. But this is exciting, getting back to what she does best! The ABC Productions Pilot should start taping next month, and I’m pretty sure those things are open to a live audience, so no doubt I’ll have more news on this project as it develops.
I’m having a little trouble trying to figure out why the hell it has taken so long for The Veronicas to crack America. Their album, one of the best albums I’ve ever heard, was released over a YEAR AGO, yet only now has their second single from Hook Me Up, Untouched, made an impact in America (so far reaching #17 on the Billboard Hot 100). I saw the twins, Jessica and Lisa Origliasso, on E! News this morning and I’m really happy for them. I’d never heard of them until their song 4Ever popped up on the soundtrack for the Amanda Bynes flick She’s The Man. It may have been before that when I found out they had been part of the team behind t.A.T.u’s 2005 comeback hit All About Us (check out their, some might say, better sounding demo via YouTube). Then, in September of 2007, my awareness of them sparked, I saw their debut video from their second album, Hook Me Up, on YouTube. Initially I was hostile! Confused at their almost t.A.T.u-esque relationship displayed in the video… despite being sisters! But then I got my hands on some tracks from the album (my other recommendations: Take Me On The Floor (2nd Single), Popular, Revenge Is Sweeter (Than You Ever Were), I Can’t Stay Away & Goodbye to You) and all was forgiven, falling instantly in love with Untouched and eagerly anticipating the video (which, ultimately, I was let down by and wish they’d re-shot now it’s getting airplay).
So now, over 14 months later, that video and single is ready to drop over here in Britian, and I thought I’d use this opportunity to remind you that I actually mashed up Untouched last year, and it’s one of my favourite mash ups, but unfortunately due to the lock-down WMG has on YouTube I can’t make a video for it. So you’ll just have to make do with the audio…
The Veronicas vs. a-ha – Untouched On Me
It sort of makes me slightly hopeful that despite not setting the world on fire initially, perhaps t.A.T.u’s Happy Smiles / You and I era will eventually see it’s time to shine.
Question: What do you get if you take Lady GaGa’s current worldwide chart-topping single, Just Dance, and mix it with a two-year-old, should-have-won-Eurovision entry from Russia?
Answer:
Lady GaGa vs. Serebro – #1 Dance Song
There’re two versions available to download, the first has Colby’s rap in the middle, whilst the second is a tiny bit longer and has Lady GaGa’s rap in the middle. I know it’s already at the top of the charts, but it wouldn’t hurt to support Lady GaGa’s world domination and buy the song if you’re one of the 7 people who haven’t already! And despite being two-years-old, Serebro’s debut song is still as catchy as it was back when you first might have heard it along with me, being performed in Helsinki! As such, you can also buy it from iTunes, and loads of other places.
For a while now I’ve been mentioning the fact I joined a band. This isn’t just your usual friends-get-bored-and-decide-to-play-instruments-and-write-songs-together band, this was brought together by Cat and Dave at Jimmy’s for patients and ex-patients. We had 5 people, but now we’re down to 3… technically I didn’t want to be in the band, but I made the mistake of opening my mouth to sing, and unless we find someone else who’s better (or if I have my say, ANYONE else regardless), it looks like I’m going to be in the band. We don’t have a name yet, but we started working on our first song – written by me! It is called “You and I”, but I’ve been toying with the idea of changing the title to “U+I”. As always with today’s technology, I recorded the playback on my mobile phone so forgive the quality, but here it is…
It’s a work in progress. If I can instigate it, I want the song to have more of a… what did someone call it… Avril Lavigne meets Green Day type sound to it!
I updated to iTunes 8.0 the other day, so I could update my Apple iPhone to 2.0.1.0 (somewhere, I can hear Dave laughing at me right now). Rather than orgasm over this Genius Playlist making tool I was much more pleased to see they’d given iTunes more of a layout like the iPhone! One neat thing is Genre view which, rather than using one piece of artist artwork to identify the genre, uses a custom thumbnail. And with some simple hacking, you can create your own custom thumbnails for genres iTunes doesn’t cover (such as Trance or Mash Ups). If you want to try it I took advice from this forum, and they also included a link to an awesome Flickr group made up of these custom genre thumbnails. I don’t have a Flickr account, so I’m going to upload the custom genre thumbnails I made here, free for you to use as you see fit!
And after all this I still haven’t updated my iPhone! Shame it can’t carry over this neat little feature to the iPod. If you’re wondering, my most populated genres are Pop, Electronic/Rock, Rock, and Acoustic! And I’ve listened to You & I about 13 times since Friday! My iPod doesn’t seem to want to scrobble this fact but it’s true!
I’m currently listening to Russian radio, in preparation to hear the premiere of t.A.T.u.’s first major English song in three years, You & I (the song that should signal their comeback to the mainstream charts and wake up the public to the fact they still exist, but given they have no international label it may take some time). It’s going to be one of the few English-only language songs included on the album Veselye Ulybki (Happy Smiles), also their first completely new album in three years. I’ve literally been tracking it’s creation every step of the way, loving all the little snippets and singles I’ve heard so far. I have to say I’m far more excited about the Russian language songs than their English counterparts, mainly because their better lyric-writing group (the ones responsible for their major hits) are only involved with a few of them (You & I). The translated songs written by the other writers (only one of which I know at the moment, White Robe) don’t seem to hold as much meaning. If I’ve got you interested click here to listen to the song. It’s set to be played at 5pm GMT (a direct link to the song has now been added).
So why the cryptic blog title? Well, I haven’t confirmed my truths lately. Here’s what’s been happening: I discovered on Wednesday after my transfusion my Hickman Line (see my History) has got a puncture in it and unless it can be repaired I’m going to have to have a new put in. We’re waiting for news on whether it can be repaired until Monday and if not then I’ll be in hospital Thursday and Friday. It got me a bit upset but I’m okay with it now, it spurred me on to do some work and I got my first new episode of The Caliente Affairs in almost two years online the same day I found out! I’ll keep you updated from now on (if I can get my iPhone to work at the hospital, it hasn’t lately).
UPDATE: GOOD NEWS! I have just got the phonecall to say a repair kit has been found so hopefully everything is set for Monday and I won’t have to have an operation!
I’m in the middle of reposting my old video blogs and I’ve got my iTunes on random, and ‘On Your Way to the Disco’ came on by Rogue Traders, you know, from Better in the Dark, the album I was raving about last week and listened to non-stop during my trip to The Deep – well unfortunately as soon as it came on it made me think of what a good time I had had, and how I’m currently not having a good time.
This is not the first time I’ve listened to an album so much that it’s grown emotional connotations and I can no longer bear to listen to it without being remeinded of a happier time: March 2006, on my way to London to go see Goldfrapp. The album: Delays, You See Colours.
It’s funny, cos when I was listening to Better in The Dark I rememebered what had happened with Delays but I figured maybe I had partly grown out of that album and that there’s no way it would happen with this one… oh dear. We’ll see, I can’t write it all off, I was listening to ‘I Never Liked You’ and ‘What You’re On’ way before my trip so those two might be safe!
I get to post about my first Interesting Person (note the blogroll)! This is the brand new Kelly video, except it’s not Kelly, it’s Kelly’s Mom! I’ve been doing a mash up of this song and now I can put it to a video when it’s finished, so to familiarise yourself with the original, watch! I’ve also been dying for me and Zoë to make a remake/parody of the video – we just don’t have a blonde wig… or any wigs… seeing as how I’d be playing the Mom… with a beard!!!
