i was looking up B&S on ebay , and i found a christmass album listed.
is this real? or just some fake thing?
can it be bought anywhere besides ebay?
if some one knows about this please let me know.
thanks
Angela
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+-+ Nee, nee mun pish, chan pai dee kwa +-+
+-+ Snipp snapp snut, sa var sagan slut! +-+
+-------------------------------------------------------------------------+
Hey there Sinister,
Yes, just what you’ve all been waiting for – my second big update. The idea
is that I aim to write them at the start of a new month. My track record at
that hasn’t been so good yet – but that’s because it’s all busy, busy here.
SIX-DAY WEEKS
As I finished off my last message not saying much about my work placement,
IÂ’ll start this one going into it in a bit more detailÂ…
As part of my work induction I went out to visit some of the slum areas of
Dhaka, as this is where my main project will be concentrated. It was so eye
opening to go and see the areas where so much work has yet to be done to
make sure that slum dwellers can have clean water and sanitation against the
odds.
In case you were wondering, the deal is that my NGO motivates the slum
community to participate in getting access to legal water supply and
hygienic latrines. The community are keen for this progress and are willing
to fully pay for the installation. This is achieved by my NGO outlaying the
initial money on a micro-credit scheme and providing technical input. The
community are involved in all of the planning, getting construction labour
etc. and they manage the water points etc. themselves. To go with this the
community participates in hygiene education. There is a lot more I can say
about all of this but softly, softlyÂ…
Another great part of this field trip was going to visit slum areas where my
NGO has already worked on installations (now fully owned by the slum
community – payback takes about two years). It meant that I got to see the
positive effect of the project first-hand and speak to some people in the
community. Thankfully I had another engineer from work to translate for me –
my Bangla certainly isnÂ’t fluent yet but itÂ’s improving.
Of course, not everything is plain sailing. I also visited sites where the
water points etc. had to be permanently closed due to the authorities
evicting those particular slums.
Starting work during Ramadan meant that things got off to a very slow start.
After the Eid holidays the pace and responsibility picked up tremendously
and IÂ’m really enjoying it! IÂ’ve got a good mixture of doing documentation &
information systems stuff along with chemical engineering work such as
setting up a chlorination procedure for the NGO. The people at work are
great which makes all the difference.
You get to meet all sorts of additional people involved in water and
sanitation. ItÂ’s an ongoing education for me meeting staff from donor and
partner organisations etc. My favourite visitor of the last month has got to
be the journalist who came to get the low-down on Bangladesh as part of the
WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) campaign. ItÂ’s great when you meet
someone with interesting viewpoints. His parents turned out to be the
founders of the New Internationalist – which explained a lot.
SHELF LIFE
People here are still trying to marry me off! I now live with a young
Bangladeshi couple (who are great and so is the flat) and I spent Eid with
their families. You learn a lot about Bangladeshi families by going to these
gatherings and I enjoyed them. The Grandmas of both houses have earmarked
cousins that I ‘should meet’ as they don’t want me to be left on the shelf
(I like to think IÂ’ve got a couple of years before my expiry date).
Eid although enjoyable, made me a little homesick. Being at big family
gatherings obviously made me think of my own loved ones – sniff!
FOR THE LOVE OF SPORTÂ…
As IÂ’m sure youÂ’re aware the most loved sport in Bangladesh is cricket.
Some of you will also be aware that IÂ’m not terribly keen on it. Still, I
thought it was absolutely necessary to take one of the afternoons off work
to go to the last one-day international Bangladesh v England. It has to be
said that it wasnÂ’t the most exciting game in the world due to team tactics
(and of course England slashed Bangladesh – he he) but the atmosphere was
phenomenal! The energy of the Bangladeshi fans is something to aspire to,
with non-stop bouncing, clapping, and singing etc. for hours on end. TheyÂ’re
a bit too quick with the old Mexican wave though and theyÂ’re SO HARSH to the
Bangladesh team if things go horribly wrong. No wonder Bangladesh never do
well on their own turf, theyÂ’re under so much pressure! I should also add
that IÂ’m not too keen on the crowd pyrotechnics. People with flares in
crowded spaces– ggrr.
(ASIDE TO ENGLISH FOOTIE FANS) Are those two pathetic Shef Utd fans still in
prison? I went to the Boro v Shef Utd pre-season friendly and every time I
looked at the part of the stand that is shut down (for the whole season)
because of them idiots I growled.
Being the girl that I am I did gush when the whole of the England cricket
team turned up at the BAGHA (British pub in Dhaka) when I was there with
some other volunteer mates. Just, there to you know – chill and watch the
game. So yes, in case you were wondering, I did manage to keep up to speed
with other important sports events over the last month or so. I supported
England through the footy and Rugby all the way (when I wasnÂ’t working),
watching other matches as well when possible. IÂ’ve even managed to catch
Boro on the T.V. a few times.
Although, itÂ’s not why IÂ’m here IÂ’m finding that people and events at BAGHA
are a good support system to keep me going. I certainly donÂ’t live in there
but itÂ’s good for relaxing at times.
TRAVEL AND VISA
IÂ’m having visa complications so IÂ’m confined to Bangladesh for another two
months. IÂ’ve now got myself set-up so that I can travel around Asia more
than just here and India – let’s hope I’ll be able to do some crossing
borders soon. So much for catching my mate in Dubai before Christmas – boo…
I do have a lot of travelling left to do in Bangladesh though. Visitors are
welcome to come and see me so I can show off the countryside here.
Please send me news! I check my emails most daysÂ…
Â…Â…Amy
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+-+ "sinsietr is a bit freaky" - stuart david, looper +-+
+-+ "legion of bedroom saddo devotees" "peculiarly deranged fanbase" +-+
+-+ "pasty-faced vegan geeks... and we LOST!" - NME April 2000 +-+
+-+ "frighteningly named Sinister List organisation" - NME May 2000 +-+
+-+ "sick posse of f**ked in the head psycho-fans" - NME June 2001 +-+
+-+ Nee, nee mun pish, chan pai dee kwa +-+
+-+ Snipp snapp snut, sa var sagan slut! +-+
+-------------------------------------------------------------------------+
Dear Sinister,
These were my thoughts after just over a month in Bangladesh. It started off
with hree weeks of VSO induction training (I'm on their Youth for
Development scheme - see the archives) and two weeks in my placement I'm
pretty settled and definitely still glad to be here. So much has happened
and although this letter is long I havenÂ’t gone into even half of my
experiences during October – it just gives you an idea.
ATMOSPHERE
After taking a few steps out of the airport, Dhaka city certainly leaves a
lasting impression. If you thought London was a hustle and bustle kind of
city then I can assure you Dhaka is at least ten times as busy. The combined
noise of rickshaw bells, car horns (drivers here certainly arenÂ’t afraid to
use them), street vendors and call to prayer from the nearest mosque is a
little bit crazy at first but it doesnÂ’t take very long to get used to it.
The first call to prayer of the day starts at 4.50 am and in Ramadan itÂ’s
about an hour earlier. Bright and early then and in the couple of abodes I
have had since I got here the mosque (speakers and all) has always been very
close. It used to wake me up before I was ready but I'm gradually attuning
to it.
I am now used to the noises of Dhaka so much so that it was very peculiar
when I went away to Koitta (an hour or so outside the city) last weekend
with all of its relative silence (although it was blissful) and lack of
pollution.
As for the heat and humidity I've been acclimatising by walking for at least
an hour each day. Now that I feel okay with this I'm joining the local mixed
hash club (the nearest equivalent to a hiking club in Dhaka). I'm going to
start off by walking and build up on my running so I can eventually run full
hashes (hopefully).
RELIGION
Now that weÂ’re in the holy month of Ramadan, I've been invited to a few Ifta
(breaking the fast) parties over the coming weeks by work colleagues. The
singing coming from the mosque loudspeakers is extra stunning at the moment
and the special decorations all around the city look marvellous. So, I am
getting to participate in a fair few Muslim traditions at the moment. I was
a bit disappointed that I couldnÂ’t get to Old Dhaka for Durga Purja (Hindu
festival) to see the statues and ceremonies. As the flight here got put back
it ended up being just after I arrived when my Bangla was so poor I wouldnÂ’t
have been able to manage properly. I've even gone back to my roots and
attended a presentation evening in a local Catholic school. I went along to
watch the traditional dancing etc. when much to my surprise I ended up on
Bangladeshi television as part of the audience. As for other religions such
as Buddhism – they are not as prominent in Dhaka city but when you get out
to the Chittagong Hill Tracts thereÂ’s more variation. I'm very keen to learn
more about the indigenous people of Bangladesh that live in that area.
Although I donÂ’t want to get into the topic just yet (IÂ’ll probably wait
until I've been to that part of the country myself)
LANGUAGE
My Bangla is improving fairly quickly. Formal classes at language school
were just during induction so I'm doing some self-learning at the moment
with books/tapes etc. I intend to take some evening classes when I think
I've exhausted the DIY effort. I've got a bit of a deal with a few members
of staff at work for mutual language learning which works pretty well. If
all else fails I resort to body language. This came in very handy when the
cook at work and I tried to have a conversation with each other. Technical
meetings at work are generally all in Bangla but I can understand about
10-30% of it and every now and again someone will get me up to speed with
what is going on. It’s good practice for my listening skills – meetings here
are a bit mental with people talking in raised voices over each other (very
quickly). I can follow the meetings well enough to interject with my
opinion/suggestions and thatÂ’s good enough for me.
ABSORBING BANGLADESHI CULTURE
Food and Clothing
As one of my supervisors at work put it “I'm well on my way to becoming an
honorary Bangladeshi”. I'm getting well practiced at eating using my right
hand. Although I do still make a fair bit of a mess! I'm really enjoying the
food here there are a lot of different types of fruit and veg here that you
canÂ’t get back in the UK. These along with meat (yes including pork - I've
discovered where the special market for pig products is) fish, rice and dhal
(contains lots of lentils and spices) is keeping me well sustained. Come to
think of it my stomach now feels that something is missing if I donÂ’t have
at least one big portion of rice in a day. I'm also becoming quite partial
to Sunggara, recipes vary but includes veg, nuts with lovely spices wrapped
in deliciously fatty batter – I must get the recipe. However, for a girl who
has a sweet tooth I've discovered something that is just too sweet for me.
Misti is pretty much just pure sugar and I canÂ’t say that I'm too fond of
it.
As I expected, I'm really getting into wearing Shalwar Kameez here. It
consists of along tunic over baggy trousers with orna (scarf) to cover the
chest. Having said that there are a few occasions when a desire for western
clothes sets in.
Exhibitions
During the last couple of weeks I've started my quest to go to museums and
art galleries for exhibitions to learn more about my new found home. The
Liberation War Museum really brings home the tragedies that came about in
the formation of the new independent republic of Bangladesh. ItÂ’s such a new
country in the governance respect (30 years) that I have a lot of belief
that major changes will happen to reduce the amount of corruption here. How
long it will take to educate enough people to make it so is anyoneÂ’s guess.
On a completely different note I attended a superb textile traditions of
Bangladesh exhibition. It had everything from antique (several hundred year
old) Samdani (rated as the most desirable material over the years) saris
through to contemporary designs using various traditional methods along with
mixtures of jute, cotton and silk. There are a lot of other things going on
that I hope to get to.
TOURISTY STUFF
I'm not planning on taking much holiday for the next couple of months until
I feel like I've really got to grips with my placement work. An opportunity
too good to miss comes around next month – I'm going with work to Chittagong
city so I plan to take a break afterwards to explore the hill tracts,
Bandarban etc.! My Bangladesh tourist hit list includes many other places
but particularly Sundarban (beautiful mangrove area in the south-west with
rare monkeys and plants) CoxÂ’s Bazaar region (south-east) and Sylhet area
(north-west). I plan to go to India a few times as well. As for other parts
of South Asia – it depends on money and time – I’ll see what I can manage.
EVERYTHING IN THE GARDEN ISN’T ALWAYS ROSY – BUT BAD SPELLS DON’T LAST LONG
Things that I hope I donÂ’t get used to during the year include (as I feel I
would lose some of my engineering/personal integrity if I did) are the
problems with human rights here, pollution, along with the lack of health
and safety practice. My mind has been fairly calm with regards to staring.
As itÂ’s not considered rude in Bangladeshi culture then you just have to
tolerate it, after all itÂ’s not threatening but just pure curiosity.
As you would expect over the month there have been a few minor ‘mishaps’
learning things the hard way. Hey, no-one said living in a developing world
city was always going to be easy and I'm still in one piece!
A few accommodation issues are now being sorted. I wasnÂ’t v. happy in the
guesthouse that my boss put me in after induction finished – access to
kitchen and in/out building proved extremely problematic. I'm now going back
to the joys of a shared flat in the not too distant future – hurrah! Where
it will be yet again easy to welcome visitorsÂ….
The negative things all float into the background compared to all the
positive things that have already happened and what I think is just round
the corner. Expect another missive in a few weeks. In the meantime please
let me know what youÂ’re up to.
As for WORK I'm enjoying it so far. IÂ’ll let you know more about it next
time!
CONTACT DETAILS
As an alternative to my email address(es) should you desire to send post
then please use the following postal box address: -
Amy Skelton
c/o VSO Bangladesh
GPO Box 406
Dhaka 1000
BANGLADESH
Note that letters usually take about a week to get here and they generally
get through okay.
Parcels are subject to customs checking and hence in this country things can
go into a (not so) mysterious void. However, the best way to get round this
seems to be to get the post office to not only staple the package but to WAX
SEAL it so that any tampering would be very obvious. Things are a lot less
likely (if at all) to go missing with wax seals. Parcels can take anything
from (the norm of) a week to a few months (unusual) to get through. DonÂ’t be
put off by this too much though as the majority of things do get through.
I'm just telling you how it is – make your own mind up.
As for a telephone I'm considering getting a new mobile here with the help
of a Bangladeshi friend to make things easier/safer for me with the time
difference etc. plus convenient for keeping in touch with my newly found
friends in Bangladesh!
PHOTOS
The first of these will be online soon – I will let you know as soon as I
get round to doing this!
Take care,
Amy
_________________________________________________________________
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+-+ "sinsietr is a bit freaky" - stuart david, looper +-+
+-+ "legion of bedroom saddo devotees" "peculiarly deranged fanbase" +-+
+-+ "pasty-faced vegan geeks... and we LOST!" - NME April 2000 +-+
+-+ "frighteningly named Sinister List organisation" - NME May 2000 +-+
+-+ "sick posse of f**ked in the head psycho-fans" - NME June 2001 +-+
+-+ Nee, nee mun pish, chan pai dee kwa +-+
+-+ Snipp snapp snut, sa var sagan slut! +-+
+-------------------------------------------------------------------------+
Oh god, the perils of the modern office environment. I was walking back from
the toilet with a well-thumbed copy of the DTI News, when I accidentally
stumbled across an office party. I ended up drinking LOTS OF PINTS OF BEER
and BALLOON MODELLING, and now i am QUITE DRUNK. I've had to meet lots of
important people this afternoon and they keep looking at me funny. Ughhhhhh!
One of my friends even threw me out of her office when I began to do an
impression of a nude lady climbing out of a cake. It was a very good
impression, too. Lord, what have I done?? I'm just going to hide in my
office from now on and make a den from books and paperclips and become a
HERMIT.
So, anyway. Hullo, how are you? Marvellous. How's the old problem? Ah,
that's grand. I was going to send you something. Hmmm, let me see. Look:
http://www.belleandsebastian.com/diary.phphttp://www.belleandsebastian.com/store.php
Lots of diary entries from Stuart on the B+S website, and new B!A!D!G!E!S!
and other stuff. The letter to his brother's really great. I do enjoy
reading his diary. I bet he knows how good a writer he is, though. I bet he
sits writing his diary thinking, yeah, I RULE!! Like Ken does, I reckon.
Uff, I was going to REPORT BACK, as well, but it seems like it's a bit too
late by now. Save to say that B+S in Londonk were G*R*A*T*E*. I spoke to the
Swedish man who tried to molest Struan and rolled up his trousers. His name
was Simon.
Me: Are you the man who tried to attack Stuart?
Him: YES I AM!!
Me: Oh, right.
Him: I TRIED TO GRAB HIS COCK!!
Me: Ah, but you failed, did you?
Him: DO YOU WANT TO SEE MY TATTOOS?
Me: Ah, hum. You know, I'd rather not, actually. Oh! Well! Is that a monkey?
Him: THIS IS THE MOST PAINFUL PLACE TO GET A TATTOO!
Me: Oh, is it really? I'd better be going, you know.
Him: I GRABBED STUART'S NIPPLES! LIKE THIS!!
Me: Ouch! Erf!! BYE!!
I beat a hasty retreat.
The rest of the weekend was fun, too. On Saturday my friends and I met an
old man in a pub. His name was Bob Godden, but he said we could call him
God.
Hmm, I'm off for a bit of a lie down. Bye!
Robin xxxxxxxxx
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+-+ "sinsietr is a bit freaky" - stuart david, looper +-+
+-+ "legion of bedroom saddo devotees" "peculiarly deranged fanbase" +-+
+-+ "pasty-faced vegan geeks... and we LOST!" - NME April 2000 +-+
+-+ "frighteningly named Sinister List organisation" - NME May 2000 +-+
+-+ "sick posse of f**ked in the head psycho-fans" - NME June 2001 +-+
+-+ Nee, nee mun pish, chan pai dee kwa +-+
+-+ Snipp snapp snut, sa var sagan slut! +-+
+-------------------------------------------------------------------------+
Shit. That 'forwarding incident' was an accident. I didnt mean to
forward the letter at all. Im sorry Paulo. I was going to reply....and
then I sent my message to sinister, and accidentally didnt delete your
message, screwing things up. I feel like a bull in a china shop now....
-kev
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+-+ "sinsietr is a bit freaky" - stuart david, looper +-+
+-+ "legion of bedroom saddo devotees" "peculiarly deranged fanbase" +-+
+-+ "pasty-faced vegan geeks... and we LOST!" - NME April 2000 +-+
+-+ "frighteningly named Sinister List organisation" - NME May 2000 +-+
+-+ "sick posse of f**ked in the head psycho-fans" - NME June 2001 +-+
+-+ Nee, nee mun pish, chan pai dee kwa +-+
+-+ Snipp snapp snut, sa var sagan slut! +-+
+-------------------------------------------------------------------------+
I was going to write to you, about the Usher Hall gig,
but I couldn't be bothered, and decided "someone else
will do it".
So it's my last week at work, before we break up for
Christmas. I thought this week was going to be
chaotic, and it has, a bit, but not in the way I
thought it would be. O me, O the Pessimist. I find it
works out better that way though.
I can really feel Christmas descending rather rapidly
upon my life. I've been casually ignoring it, but I
feel unable to do so anymore. My boyfriend is more
organised than I am, having already done some of his
christmas shopping. I think he surprised himself too -
he nearly bought more presents for the people he'd
already bought presents for, becuase he forgot he'd
bought presents for them already, and wasn't used to
being so organised.
As for me, well, I think I'm going to have to blitz
it. Go out for a day and bang bang bang, run from shop
to shop like I'm on Supermarket Sweep, only
remembering to pay for things.
I'm not that fussed about Christmas as I used to be.
Christmas when you're a kid is great. Santa was a bit
scary though. I didn't really understand why my
parents were comfortable with an old man creeping into
my bedroom to put things into my socks when I was
asleep. I didn't totally believe in him, but there was
always the nagging doubt that he did exist. The doubt
that had me hiding under the duvet at 2am, when I'd
woken in the middle of the night, too scared to come
out, and sweating with fear incase I saw him. Or at
3am, when I was too scared to go down stairs, even
though he'd filled my stocking, in case he hadn't
finished his delivery. I would often sit and go
through my stocking presents, and look and play with
the toys. And then I'd creep into my little brothers
room, have a nosey through his stocking, and swap my
tangerines with his chocolate bars, before waking him
up, so he could "officially" open his stocking, and
I'd feign surprise as he'd show me the cool toys he'd
got. I don't know if he ever worked out why he always
got 6 tangerines and no chocolate from Santa. Still, I
did him a favour. He never ended up with fillings in
his teeth.
I'd go and wake my parents, around 4am, to take me
down stairs and start opening my presents. One year, I
woke every hour between 1 and 7am, and went to see my
parents and woke them up and asked "can we go and see
if Santa's been yet?". Impatient child that I was.
When I got older, around 10 or so, I worked out that
if I set my dad's alarm clock an hour forward, then
he'd get up earlier. That was the year he said "I'm
not getting up until 7am". I was so tired, I ended up
going back to bed. And dad? Well, he woke at what he
thought was 7:30am, and felt horribly guilty for
sleeping in, and came to wake me and my brother, to
open our presents. It was boxing day before I told him
that I'd set his alarm clock forward by an hour. I
hope I never have a child like me, when I'm older.
Snogs and mistletoe,
idles
x
=====
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/corduroysmoke/ starting playground gossip and passing notes
__________________________________
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+-+ "sinsietr is a bit freaky" - stuart david, looper +-+
+-+ "legion of bedroom saddo devotees" "peculiarly deranged fanbase" +-+
+-+ "pasty-faced vegan geeks... and we LOST!" - NME April 2000 +-+
+-+ "frighteningly named Sinister List organisation" - NME May 2000 +-+
+-+ "sick posse of f**ked in the head psycho-fans" - NME June 2001 +-+
+-+ Nee, nee mun pish, chan pai dee kwa +-+
+-+ Snipp snapp snut, sa var sagan slut! +-+
+-------------------------------------------------------------------------+
Dido - Life for Rent 6.3/10
Release Date: September 30th, 2003
Review Date: October 6th, 2003
Reviewer: James Laczkowski
Confession. I like Dido. I don't know why a guy like me should be shamefaced
about owning her last record, No Angel. Sure, it's sandwiched in my CD
collection in between Black Sabbath and Fugazi, but there's nothing wrong
with diversity, damn it! Especially when you're a music devotee like me. I
also have no qualms with having mutual respect for the lyrics of both Joni
Mitchell and Marilyn Manson. I just want to make that clear to all those who
may question my wide range of taste in music. For some reason, Dido is
pleasing to these ears.
I liked her latest record, No Angel, the same way I like a cold Coca-Cola on
a warm summer day. Part of me does become conscious of the fact that I'm
essentially drinking sugar water, devoid of any nutritional value
whatsoever, but I enjoy the taste. Both of Dido's records serve as terrific
background music for hanging out on the porch or at the local coffeehouse.
Granted, I'm not a big proponent of "background" filler. All great art
demands your attention and moves you in mysterious ways. Dido doesn't do
that, but at the same time, I never shriek in terror whenever I hear one of
her songs. Like Pink, she's a "guilty" pleasure for me. It's nothing that
really jumps out at you, but it never annoys or interrupts the evening, but
instead, complements it quite nicely.
Dido never wails. She sounds as if she's trapped in a dreamscape; drifting
effortlessly over the horizon. She's no Janis, but her voice suits the style
quite nicely. The first two sounds that merge on the new album are that of a
Moog-style synth orchestra that quickly bleeds into real violins that set
the tone. It's a lovely amalgam of both the real and the synthesized. Dido
builds her niche in that sound and by not evolving; it all blends together
in what's essentially a continuation of the No Angel style of songwriting.
The same lyrical profile takes shape with the subject of love being both
inescapable, as well as in question, and finally, in jeopardy for the
singer. But as unenergetic as she can sound, she still sings from the heart
and not her wallet. In other words, she keeps the content and the romantic
structure simple, and it works, especially in the hidden track that features
the familiar acoustic strum in the key of D. No one expects the woman to
reinvent herself, but of course detractors will continue to flame her for
being "bland" or "boring." I beg to differ. She is relaxing without being
invigorating. She doesn't make you want to rock out, because every track is
consistently (and unfortunately) mid-tempo. The trip-hop ambiance full of
floaty phaser keyboard with groovebox beats play themselves out over time.
Beth Orton, however, has perfected that genre a little bit better and more
audaciously than Dido.
Still, her honesty keeps the music pure despite the obvious redundancy
throughout. It's clear that she's striving to prevail, with more hit singles
because some tracks sound too much like "Here With Me" and "Thank You," two
songs that I enjoyed even if they were overplayed. The best tracks like the
confessional "Who Makes You Feel" make her sound invitingly sensual, and the
relentless melody of both "Don't Leave Home" and "Sand In My Shoes" force
their way into your head and take up residence.
Life For rent is, to put it simplistically, appealing and pleasant. It's
well-produced and immaculately polished without ever really sounding
spectacular or new. In other words, you know what to expect when you pick up
a Dido record. I think if she were to branch out beyond the trip-hop
conventions and lean more towards the acoustic appeal of her hidden track,
then she very well might prevail over time as a stronger recording artist
instead of a two-hit wonder. Whether you're a fan or not, there's no denying
the sincerity in her voice when she's singing a line like "The closer you
get/the better I feel/the closer you are/the more I see." There's nothing
wrong with accessible plain-sounding FM pop when it's done honestly and with
a sense of purity. Dido may tread familiar waters, but the weather is nice
all-around.
- James Laczkowski jim(a)music-critic.ca
----------
As I sat on the fading sunset of a December evening, i felt a lot of pain
rising from below, however, the pain eased as the sunset continued to fade
and the heat is sucked dry by the cold breeze of the Winter night. Now the
sky is darkened, there are no stars, and my loneliness is reflected on the
vast black wall of silence. That is, before the silence was broken, by the
sound of the handbrake of a car, i could see from the distance it was the
girl i used to love, and another man, talking, she looked impressed. I
guess he must be talking about indie bands, she is impressed by indie bands,
even if they're boring as hell.
His music knowledge couldn't have been that vast though as soon afterwards
there was no more talking, and i felt even more alone. I turned back
towards the sky, no longer silent, disturbed by the noise from the badly
oiled suspensions of the car. I hummed "She's losing it", but I don't know
who lost. I didn't win, that man might have won, she's conceived.
Ken
P.S.: Hope you guys don't mind me posting crazy random stuff to here!!
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+-------------------------------------------------------------------------+
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To send to the list mail sinister(a)missprint.org. To unsubscribe
send "unsubscribe sinister" or "unsubscribe sinister-digest" to
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+-+ "sinsietr is a bit freaky" - stuart david, looper +-+
+-+ "legion of bedroom saddo devotees" "peculiarly deranged fanbase" +-+
+-+ "pasty-faced vegan geeks... and we LOST!" - NME April 2000 +-+
+-+ "frighteningly named Sinister List organisation" - NME May 2000 +-+
+-+ "sick posse of f**ked in the head psycho-fans" - NME June 2001 +-+
+-+ Nee, nee mun pish, chan pai dee kwa +-+
+-+ Snipp snapp snut, sa var sagan slut! +-+
+-------------------------------------------------------------------------+
http://www.metrotimes.com/editorial/review.asp?id=83154
Oh Honey, We�re Ridiculous
Pas/Cal
Le Grand Magistery
by Nate Cavalieri
12/17/2003
Like every kid fueled by sugary cereals and social
dysfunction, I sometimes had a hard time sleeping.
Occasionally, I could talk my mom into staying up and
watching the night dramas with her. It wasn�t just
trysts of entangled lovers on �Dallas� and �Falcon
Crest� that confused my preadolescent mind; the adult
commercials were equally mysterious. The most
memorable of these was for shampoo. A beautiful,
floating head, larger than life at the center of the
screen, softly offered a honeyed plea: �Don�t hate me
because I�m beautiful.� And then � in a few seconds �
she faded out and was gone.
I didn�t have an inkling of such a concept at the time
� one that made a beautiful thing into an object of
hatred � but in the 20 years since, the idea has come
into focus. When I try to justify my utter hatred, my
curdling spite, my embittered repulsion at the music
of Pas/Cal, there might be no other reason except that
it is too beautiful.
The darling Detroit outfit�s latest, Oh Honey, We�re
Ridiculous, follows the blueprint of their tuneful
debut with a cache of brilliant hooks, bookish
observations and blissful sentimentality.
Oh Honey springs to action with hands clapping a
cheerleader�s cadence and vocalist Casimer Pascal�s
falsetto posing the questions: �What happened to the
sand? What happened to the men who would stay up so
late?� Unable to contain themselves, it takes the
sing-songers just over a minute to prance buoyantly
into pitch-perfect �la-di-das.� The squeaky-clean
playing and attentive arrangement are almost too
perfect. Imagine their shiny pink faces! Imagine them
jet-setting with designer attach�s! Throwing back
highballs at the club with their legs crossed at the
knee and an �80s cosmetics model on each arm! You
almost have to hate it.
>From the perky handclaps to the final fade, Pas/Cal�s
aural sunshine never finds a cloud. The subject of
�Poor Maude� may be a garishly dressed granny with
suicidal tendencies, but the band�s airtight pop seems
to frolic through the narrative giddily. When they do
wax misty for an Asian cutie with a �slurry curry
voice�(how Anglo is that?!) in �What do the American
Girls Have On Jennifer Jo Jo?,� the record is still on
the verge of exploding in a hail of happy pills.
By the time the EP joyfully spins round a handful of
times, Pas/Cal�s super-chic happiness proves itself
just as addictive as it is immaculate. It reinforces
the band�s place as one of Detroit�s most
stylistically refreshing up-and-comers. In the end,
maybe the only real reason to hate the 20-minute
offering is that � like the floating head � it�s a
beautiful thing that disappears too fast.
Pas/Cal will celebrate the release of this record on
Saturday, Dec. 20, at the Lager House (1254 Michigan
Ave., Detroit). Call 313-961-4668.
E-mail Nate Cavalieri at letters(a)metrotimes.com.
contact PAS/CAL at www.pascalgoespop.com
__________________________________
Do you Yahoo!?
New Yahoo! Photos - easier uploading and sharing.
http://photos.yahoo.com/
+-------------------------------------------------------------------------+
+---+ Brought to you by the Sinister mailing list +---+
To send to the list mail sinister(a)missprint.org. To unsubscribe
send "unsubscribe sinister" or "unsubscribe sinister-digest" to
majordomo(a)missprint.org. WWW: http://www.missprint.org/sinister
+-+ "sinsietr is a bit freaky" - stuart david, looper +-+
+-+ "legion of bedroom saddo devotees" "peculiarly deranged fanbase" +-+
+-+ "pasty-faced vegan geeks... and we LOST!" - NME April 2000 +-+
+-+ "frighteningly named Sinister List organisation" - NME May 2000 +-+
+-+ "sick posse of f**ked in the head psycho-fans" - NME June 2001 +-+
+-+ Nee, nee mun pish, chan pai dee kwa +-+
+-+ Snipp snapp snut, sa var sagan slut! +-+
+-------------------------------------------------------------------------+
Remember when I write this shit, it tends to be just a spew of my ideas
at the moment, with no attention to anything real, I just kind of ramble
and use it as an exercise in writing...I overemphasize some things and
under emphasize others, its just a way of writing I've grown to like...
Ink polaroids? Ill check it out once I get home, I've got school to get
to and teachers to annoy.
-Kevin
Paulo Stinsoni wrote:
> Now I don't want to get on your bad side, but why is this girl a
> phoney when you haven't spoken to her? How do you know? What makes a
> fan and what makes a phoney?
>
> You know, I like sending mails to Sinister just to get a reaction.
> Good or bad. The twee argument always gets people wound up.
>
> AND, have you tried the ink polaroids? Check it out in the archives...
>
> So anyway, mellow out and let people do what they want. If it doesn't
> harm anyone, then leave 'em to it.
>
> Paulo
>
> PS - I hate all that pop idol stuff and manufactured bands, but I
> don't mind a few Monkees songs.
>
>> From: Kevin Holzer <uberelite(a)adelphia.net>
>> Reply-To: Kevin Holzer <uberelite(a)adelphia.net>
>> To: sinister(a)missprint.org
>> Subject: Sinister: just another fading image on the horizon...
>> Date: Tue, 16 Dec 2003 23:51:49 -0800
>>
>> As I was sitting in the local cafe with all of the hipsters I know, I
>> got to thinking about life. I'm not going to bore you all with what
>> I thought, but I tell you, I just don't know. A girl I once liked
>> that was into Belle and Sebastian came into the coffeshop and got
>> some coffee, sat inside and sipped away, chattering with her
>> pretentious friends. What a bunch of phonies. They are all into
>> music if it is underground, regardless of whether they like it or
>> not, and the same is true about popular or even semi-popular (modern)
>> music, except that instead of liking it, they automatically dislike
>> it.. She walks around with her scarf on and her hair dyed, wearing
>> her hipster clothes and trying so hard to be cool...but I see through
>> her disguise. I never even really met her, she was just in one of my
>> classes, but no matter. I dont want to know her. So I sip my
>> coffee, and play my guitar. I'll draw a picture or read a book.
>> Chat about philosophy or literature. Whenever I feel lonely, I'll
>> take a walk and in a minute or two I'll be out on the shore, watching
>> the waves roll in, so violent and yet so peaceful. I'll smell the
>> salt in the air and feel the cool autumn breeze. I'll hum a familiar
>> tune and look up at the cloud filled sky; I wonder to myself if it's
>> worth it. Then I think to myself again about the past few minutes,
>> the time spent growing, and everything and I realize it is all worth
>> it. So I walk back to the cafe and sip some more coffee, light up a
>> cigarette, and get into a conversation with someone about a book I
>> had read a long time ago.
>>
>>
>>
>> lots of love as always,
>> -Kevin
>>
>>
>> P.S. I hope all of you dont mind me using this place as a spot to
>> send these little messages, they make me feel as if I have a chance
>> to share something very personal with all of you. I could talk about
>> music, but everyone does that.
>> +-------------------------------------------------------------------------+
>>
>> +---+ Brought to you by the Sinister mailing list +---+
>> To send to the list mail sinister(a)missprint.org. To unsubscribe
>> send "unsubscribe sinister" or "unsubscribe sinister-digest" to
>> majordomo(a)missprint.org. WWW: http://www.missprint.org/sinister
>> +-+ "sinsietr is a bit freaky" - stuart david, looper
>> +-+
>> +-+ "legion of bedroom saddo devotees" "peculiarly deranged fanbase"
>> +-+
>> +-+ "pasty-faced vegan geeks... and we LOST!" - NME April 2000
>> +-+
>> +-+ "frighteningly named Sinister List organisation" - NME May 2000
>> +-+
>> +-+ "sick posse of f**ked in the head psycho-fans" - NME June 2001
>> +-+
>> +-+ Nee, nee mun pish, chan pai dee kwa
>> +-+
>> +-+ Snipp snapp snut, sa var sagan slut!
>> +-+
>> +-------------------------------------------------------------------------+
>>
>
>
> _________________________________________________________________
> Tired of 56k? Get a FREE BT Broadband connection
> http://www.msn.co.uk/specials/btbroadband
>
>
+-------------------------------------------------------------------------+
+---+ Brought to you by the Sinister mailing list +---+
To send to the list mail sinister(a)missprint.org. To unsubscribe
send "unsubscribe sinister" or "unsubscribe sinister-digest" to
majordomo(a)missprint.org. WWW: http://www.missprint.org/sinister
+-+ "sinsietr is a bit freaky" - stuart david, looper +-+
+-+ "legion of bedroom saddo devotees" "peculiarly deranged fanbase" +-+
+-+ "pasty-faced vegan geeks... and we LOST!" - NME April 2000 +-+
+-+ "frighteningly named Sinister List organisation" - NME May 2000 +-+
+-+ "sick posse of f**ked in the head psycho-fans" - NME June 2001 +-+
+-+ Nee, nee mun pish, chan pai dee kwa +-+
+-+ Snipp snapp snut, sa var sagan slut! +-+
+-------------------------------------------------------------------------+
As I was sitting in the local cafe with all of the hipsters I know, I
got to thinking about life. I'm not going to bore you all with what I
thought, but I tell you, I just don't know. A girl I once liked that
was into Belle and Sebastian came into the coffeshop and got some
coffee, sat inside and sipped away, chattering with her pretentious
friends. What a bunch of phonies. They are all into music if it is
underground, regardless of whether they like it or not, and the same is
true about popular or even semi-popular (modern) music, except that
instead of liking it, they automatically dislike it.. She walks around
with her scarf on and her hair dyed, wearing her hipster clothes and
trying so hard to be cool...but I see through her disguise. I never
even really met her, she was just in one of my classes, but no matter.
I dont want to know her. So I sip my coffee, and play my guitar. I'll
draw a picture or read a book. Chat about philosophy or literature.
Whenever I feel lonely, I'll take a walk and in a minute or two I'll be
out on the shore, watching the waves roll in, so violent and yet so
peaceful. I'll smell the salt in the air and feel the cool autumn
breeze. I'll hum a familiar tune and look up at the cloud filled sky; I
wonder to myself if it's worth it. Then I think to myself again about
the past few minutes, the time spent growing, and everything and I
realize it is all worth it. So I walk back to the cafe and sip some
more coffee, light up a cigarette, and get into a conversation with
someone about a book I had read a long time ago.
lots of love as always,
-Kevin
P.S. I hope all of you dont mind me using this place as a spot to send
these little messages, they make me feel as if I have a chance to share
something very personal with all of you. I could talk about music, but
everyone does that.
+-------------------------------------------------------------------------+
+---+ Brought to you by the Sinister mailing list +---+
To send to the list mail sinister(a)missprint.org. To unsubscribe
send "unsubscribe sinister" or "unsubscribe sinister-digest" to
majordomo(a)missprint.org. WWW: http://www.missprint.org/sinister
+-+ "sinsietr is a bit freaky" - stuart david, looper +-+
+-+ "legion of bedroom saddo devotees" "peculiarly deranged fanbase" +-+
+-+ "pasty-faced vegan geeks... and we LOST!" - NME April 2000 +-+
+-+ "frighteningly named Sinister List organisation" - NME May 2000 +-+
+-+ "sick posse of f**ked in the head psycho-fans" - NME June 2001 +-+
+-+ Nee, nee mun pish, chan pai dee kwa +-+
+-+ Snipp snapp snut, sa var sagan slut! +-+
+-------------------------------------------------------------------------+
