What English Sounds Like to Foreigners
A German singer wrote this song with gibberish to sound like English. If you’ve ever wondered what other people think Americans sound like, this is it. [via TNBT]
Interesting, I’ve actually always wondered. Funny as well.
I’m sure some language expert could dissect what exactly is going on here, but really, it’s just a cool-sounding song to me.
Paper Planes by The Da Vincis
originally by M.I.A.Ok, I already know what you’re thinking… another Paper Planes cover? I know… I know. (Hey, at least it isn’t MGMT or Kings of Leon, right?) But this one is really, really great. These three 17 year old kids from Jackson, Mississippi really get music. It’s catchy, it’s pretty funny, and I’m pretty sure you’ll dig it even if you hate the original. By the way, they’re releasing their debut LP, See You Tonight on Tuesday.
—indieandyyReblogged after approximately 20 seconds of listening. Awesome.
i lol’d as soon as i heard the vocals
Great stuff, especially the chorus
But the shitstorm occurring over at the Arts Etc. page at the Badger Herald is hilarious.
Situation: Ann Rivall writes a blog post on ‘The Beat Goes On’ reviewing David Archuleta’s new Christmas album, with the headline “Archuleta has ho-ho-horrible 2nd album, new single”.
Within 8 hours of the story being posted, comments started pouring in from David Archuleta fans, known as “Archies.” They attack Ann, call her stupid, a terrible journalist, and a lemming. They tell her that DA has sold out every concert, is a nice young man, and compare him to Elvis. By morning, there’s over 100 comments. As a comparison, the next best popular story has 2 comments.
Mid-afternoon Friday: Arts Etc. editor Cailey Hammel writes an open letter to David Archuleta “fans” (their quotes, not mine), comparing their reaction to someone offended by 9/11 jokes. She finishes the letter by saying “If you still disagree with me, bring it on fuckers.”
260 comments later, there are people searching for their personal info, blatant trolls (someone with the user name “Concern UW Student” cycling the mailing info for basically every authority figure at UW calling for a full apology from the paper), and anonymous commenters who appear to be horny Christian mothers in their 40s who are shocked that someone used the word fuck on the Internet.
Now, Votefortheworst.com, a well-established Idol saboteur, is getting in on the fun. VFTW has gained national media attention in the past by picking who they believe to be the worst contestant on the show, and encouraging all their readers to vote for them over and over. They endorse the BH’s actions, and invite the two students to do their radio show tomorrow morning. More linking, more crazed Archies criticizing, and we now have the most-commented story in BH history.
I only bring this up to you because if you can stand skimming the comments, they are some of the funniest ones you’ll ever read. You don’t have to leave collegehumor or youtube to find comments like “Shut the fuck up you faggot” or “I’ll fucking kill you douchewad”, but nowhere but Archuleta-related stories will you find commenters citing Jesus and praying for your bewitched soul, wondering why anyone would say mean things about “such a nice young man”.
I was planning on linking you guys to a bunch of my articles that I’ve forgotten to post over the last few days (and I probably will do that eventually), but this was just too epic to pass up.
caseydonahue:boomboxexplosion:
Notorious BIG and Miley Cyrus - Party and Bullshit (In the USA)
Third Eye Blind came to my school Saturday night. I’ll get this off the table, or put it on the bookshelf, or in your pocket, whatever, right now: Third Eye Blind has never, nor ever will be, my favorite band. I do, however, remember many a car ride with the Mom and Dad spent listening to 96.1 FM before it became shitty, all the while enjoying tunes like “How’s It Going to Be,” “Semi-Charmed Life,” “Jumper,” “Never Let You Go”…you get the idea. They’re one of THE bands of the 90’s, so I grew up with them. This concert was twelve years in the making for me and it was totally worth it.
My school is generally populated with various obnoxious New England stereotypes: The guidos, orange sluts with boob jobs, people who only wear Ed Hardy, the frail and baseball cap-wearing guys who are creepily obsessed with sports but don’t actually play them, etc. They’re people I’m not really used to dealing with, so being in college has been very if not more difficult than high school, as far as finding a large group of friends goes. With that said, it was extremely refreshing to enjoy some music that everyone agreed on for once. Stephen Jenkins, the lead singer (I’ll admit I had to look that up), even took the time to genuinely thank us as an audience, and as fans, for supporting them after all these years. These guys are making a comeback and they totally deserve to. It was my school’s first ever sold-out show.
Also, I was plastered.
Third Eye Blind is playing Freakfest (our Halloween show) this year, and it’s the first one since I’ve been here that I’m excited about. Also, I didn’t realize all the aforementioned stereotypical douches were so plentiful at QU. A couple kids from my high school go there and they never mentioned it.
But yes, I will be plastered come Halloween as well, possibly dressed as a character from the Mario Bros. universe.
Southern Point — Grizzly BearHey you! Go get this album from somewhere.
The Top 35 Or So Songs of the 80’s
#01: Talking Heads - This Must Be The Place (Naive Melody) [Live]
As the story goes, “This Must Be The Place” is the first “love song” that the band had written, and given David Byrne’s years of droll observational comedy (not mention 1978’s “I’m Not In Love), this is an iffy proposition. After all, think about how strange a line like “LOVE ME TILL MY HEART STOPS” is coming from Byrne. This explains the self-conscious distancing of the “Naive Melody” subtitle: To commit to the song, Byrne undercuts the sentiment in order to play the role. Now, to be honest, I don’t really care for the studio version on Speaking In Tongues. The groove feels too stiff and mechanical, the naive melody too squelchy and Byrne too disaffected. I actually find that performance quite troubling because the song is so sweet and lovely that I want every gesture to be authentic and unforced. And here, performed live by the band at their peak and with Byrne rejoicing in his naivete, we find the band’s greatest performance and indeed the best song of the decade.
The clip of the song from Stop Making Sense famously features Byrne dancing with a lamp. It’s an homage to the domestic bliss and romantic wonder of the lyrics, which at first blush is uncharacteristic theme from the band. The jet-lag of “Houses in Motion” and the worldbeat freak-out of Remain In Light seemed to obliterate the concept of the private space, but we’re dealing with a rebooted version of the Talking Heads, given the band’s split from Brian Eno and the hiatus that followed RIL. That Speaking In Tongues is bookended by “Burning Down The House” and “This Must Be The Place” reads to me like a conscious effort to rebuild the domestic space—rip it up and start again, right?—in the noisy, info-overloaded world of their last album.
Of course, home here is hardly a shelter (in contrast to Laurie Anderson’s “O Superman”), and this song is no retreat. For a songwriter like David Byrne, such sincerity and romance made for uncharted territory, and he carefully positions himself in order to deliver the lyrics. “The less we say about it, the better” speaks to his hesitance to tackle such subject matter, because—think about it—the less Byrne analyzes here, the better, and so he makes it up as he goes along. “I’m just an animal looking for a home”, he eventually admits, summarizing a nice chunk of the human condition, and when he finds that place—yes, this must be the place!—it’s a cause for celebration. Far from reactionary then, the song takes a bold step into an unfamiliar place—ironically, home—and that the band captures the lamp-dancing awe and indeed the naive melody of domestic bliss makes “This Must Be The Place” a lasting triumph.
It’s been quite the journey Tristn… Anyone who’s a fan of good writing, good music (especially post-punk), and lists, check out Postpunk’s Top 35 songs (or so) of the ’80s.
Lux Aeterna by Chris Mansell
If I ever make a movie, this will be on the soundtrack. Even if that movie has no instances in which Lux Aeterna should be played. Even if that movie is a screwball comedy starring Leslie Nielsen as a bumbling, well-meaning zookeeper and Bill Murray as the sarcastic, unhelpful cage cleaner. I will still use this song.
Jonah Hill will play an orangutan.
