aerosmith - cryin'

So... back for another (the how many-eth?) attempt.

I've already mentioned how Always got me hooked on music for good. Well... the first video I remember seeing, ever, was this one. It was back in the days when my brother was listening to music and especially a thing called rock, which of course made me hate that thing. And particularly a band named Aerosmith, who had an unplugged concert on that dreaded MTV station, which was watched at maximum volume while I had to keep quiet with the TV blasting in my ears. Ah well. It made me remember the band's name... and well, I saw this video and I freakin' liked it O_o. Though later I kept confusing Cryin' with Crazy. I guess these two are like November Rain and Don't Cry for Guns... Welcome to the Jungle and Livin' on the Edge rock, but it's November Rain/Don't Cry and Crazy/Cryin' that get the chicks :P

muse - sing for absolution

muse was a concert highlight. i blogged about it (or not) in my personal blog. picking just one song is hard, but sing for absolution is definitely one of my favourites. damn sensitive and touching song.

eminem - sing for the moment

This Eminem song rocks. Well, that's probably due to the guitar part being sampled from Aerosmith's Dream On. But you know what? As much as I like Aerosmith, I like Sing for the Moment better. It's... edgier.

midnight oil - beds are burning

No special reason for this song other than me liking it and me hearing it in the cab, while I was en route to hand in my final paper for my master's degree (yep, am about to finish the darn thing).

How can we dance when our earth is turning?
How do we sleep when our beds are burning?

pearl jam - i am mine

Ok, I can't really say I know much about grunge. I can't therefore say that I like it or not. The first (and for a long time only) Pearl Jam song I ever heard was back in grunge's heyday - it was of course Jeremy and I was barely in my teens. I had somewhat mixed feelings about it. I kind of liked it, but kind of... considered it unproper, I think.

I think a friend of mine sent me I Am Mine. It came on playing some while ago, which made me look for more Pearl Jam stuff. I like Eddie Vedder's voice, that much I can say. I am still in the process of listening to these guys, so I still can't tell you whether or not I like them and I definitely can't extend that to a whole genre, of which, wikipedia informs me, they are not completely representative. But this song has stuck with me. I don't want to withhold the lyrics from you, either.

The selfish, they're all standing in line
Faithing and hoping to buy themselves time
Me, I figure as each breath goes by
I only own my mind

The North is to South what the clock is to time
There's east and there's west and there's everywhere life
I know I was born and I know that I'll die
The in between is mine
I am mine

And the feeling, it gets left behind
All the innocence lost at one time
Significant, behind the eyes
There's no need to hide
We're safe tonight

The ocean is full 'cause everyone's crying
The full moon is looking for friends at hightide
The sorrow grows bigger when the sorrow's denied
I only know my mind
I am mine

And the meaning, it gets left behind
All the innocents lost at one time
Significant, behind the eyes
There's no need to hide
We're safe tonight

And the feelings that get left behind
All the innocents broken with lies
Significance, between the lines
(We may need to hide)

And the meanings that get left behind
All the innocents lost at one time
We're all different behind the eyes
There's no need to hide

alice cooper - poison

Ooooooooookay, I'm back in the business :D.
I'm not even going to start telling you why I haven't blogged. But I'm back now and maybe I'll keep going for another couple of months before I take another break ;)

The choice of song is not random. July 1st (though four days ago) was the last concert day of the B'estival, an open air festival that promises to be held yearly in Bucharest. If it promises that, I promise to go, because I've had a really good time this year and enjoyed some really good performances. One of which belongs to shock-rocker grandpa Alice Cooper. That's right, the dude was painting his face and scaring over-concerned mums when the likes of Marylin Manson (with whom he shared the stage twice for a duet) and Slipknot were still peeing in their diapers.

So, this is the first song from the encore, one of the most looked forward to. Needless to say the crowd went hysterical (Oh, did I mention for the umpth time I had front row? And that I have one of Jason Hook's guitar picks?)

genesis - jesus he knows me

Ok, moving on to a little bit of an Easter theme for three or four days now. Or not necessarily Easter but semi-demi-religious at least. So first one... taking the mick out of TV evangelists are Genesis with Jesus He Knows Me. Of course the first Genesis song and vid I knew was I Can't Dance but this one is even more fun-making :) with Phil Collins as the money-making preacher. I am actually not really sure if I know any Genesis songs from the Peter Gabriel era. Oh, and Genesis will probably have another entry here with Ray Wilson as a vocal, as that really meant a shift in sound. And this might be blasphemy, but I loved the songs he made with Genesis more than any other tracks I've heard from the band.

jon bon jovi - miracle

So I've told you before how it all started. Am going back in time all of a sudden. I've taken out all my tapes, and cd's to listen to, I brought my cd with the discography to work tonight. Because someone on the forum I'm on decided to open a thread. It was like opening the door of a submarine while still underwater. I'm being swept off my feet once again. Added to that, an online acquaintance of mine whom I've been talking about the concerts I mean to go to said that the only one he would attend would be a Bon Jovi concert. I replied after five minutes of fantasizing of how that would actually feel... and if it wouldn't kill me.

This particular song is features on the Young Guns II soundtrack, along with Academy Award nominated Blaze of Glory. I remember how happy I was back in 1995 or so when MTV had an entire weekend dedicated to BJ and I actually saw the video to this, seeing I never knew until then that it had been released as a single. I had had lyrics of the song written on my (by now hopefully famous ;) ) huge paper sheet on my drawer door. It's an encouraging song to hear.

A penny for your thoughts now baby
Looks like the weight of the world's on your shoulders now
I know you think you're going crazy
Just when it seems everything's gonna work itself out
They drive you right back down

And you said it ain't fair
That a man walks when a bird can fly
We have to kick the ground, the stars kiss the sky
They say that spirits live, a man has to die
They promised us truth, now they're giving us lies

Gonna take a miracle top save us this time
And your savior has just left town
Gonna need a miracle 'cause it's all on the line
And I won't let you down
The river of your hope is flooding
And I know the dam is busted
If you need me I'll come running
I won't let you down... no, no

You're looking for salvation
You thought that it'd be shining like an angel's light, yeah
Well, the angels left this nation
And salvation caught the last train out tonight
He lost a hell of a fight

He said: "I'm just one man, that's all I'll ever be
I never can be everything you wanted from me
I've got big plans so big that any blind man could see
I'm standing in the river
Now I'm drowning in the sea"

Gonna take a miracle top save us this time
And your savior has just left town
Gonna need a miracle 'cause your heart's on the line
And your heartbeat is slowing down
Your feet are grounded still you're reaching for the sky
You can let 'em clip your wings 'cause I believe that you can fly

Well my eyes have seen the horror of the coming of the flood
I've driven deep the thorny crown into the soul of someone's son
Still I'll look you in the eye 'cause I've believed in things I've thought
And I'll die without regret for the wars I have fought

george michael - killer / papa was a rolling stone

This is another major artist having a concert in Romania this year. Unfortunately, I won't be in the country when this is happening, otherwise I might seriously consider attending this one too :) I've been meaning to do a George Michael blog for some time now, but kept wondering what song to use. This came on late one night on VH-1 and I said this must be it. I don't generally like covers. There are few that can stand up to the original or maybe surpass it. This is two covers in one and it sounds great. It's Adamski's Killer and The Temptation's Papa Was a Rolling Stone in a medley, with a cool black and white video, taking the mick out of consumerism a bit and featuring some sexy lip scenes with piercings ;)

placebo - twenty years

They were bound to show up again on the blog and I couldn't have found a better excuse than the concert series :) I don't know why out of the entire set they played, Twenty Years is the one song that always takes me back in time to that particular August night. "There are twenty years to go, with many friends I hope, though some may hold the rose and some may hold the rope..." I will just copy-paste part of an entry in my personal blog here:

the opener is infra-red, one of the best if not the best track of the album... "someone call the ambulance, there's gonna be an accident", well, i at least am high, this is no night to consider sore throats, "i'm coming up on infra-red, there's no running that can hide you, cause I can see in the dark...". next up is meds, another killer track, no it's brilliant, though i somehow miss the chick's voice... "baby, did you forget to take your meds?", nope, that's not the issue, there is no med that can put up with this, and then because i want you. so do we. then the screams get even louder when black-eyedstarts, yep it looks like the right people came to the concert, then song to say goodbye and what can be cooler than spending money on a ticket to hear a dude sing you "you are one of god's mistakes, you're crying tragic waste of skin" to some hypnothizing chords, and no, i am not a masochist, i'm just a darn happy fan.

but it can get better, next is special k, the first placebo song i ever heard, with that wonderful video with the mini-sub. then the inevitable technical problems, "this being a totally live show things are bound to go wrong, and right now they just did", guitars changing, and yes, the show must go on, there starts another special... special needs this time. "just nineteen, a sucker's dream, guess I thought you had the flavour, just nineteen and dream obscene with six months off for bad behaviour" and no, i am not nineteen, but i can rise up to any hysterical bsb-fan or whoever it is they are worshipping these days.

then, again off the meds album there is drag, "you're always ahead of the pack, I drag behind", no you don't, they are really on top and they are here, live, in font of me and i still don't believe it, then every me and every you, people sing it out loud, as someone said, well not some anyone, but the seraph in person, it's the placebo song of which every loser (aka manele listener) knows. of which, yes, but which - i doubt. however, who's there knows and sings. then there's one of a kind, "on top of the world you get nothing... done" and then see you at the bitter end and placebo exit stage. people scream, shout, clap on seats for around five minutes, i still don't know whether what followed was an encore or just the resuming of the concert after technical trouble. fact is, placebo are back on stage, and what can be heard is running up the hill, a kate bush cover. brian introduces the band, after which nancy boy follows, "got the muse in my head, she's universal", yes she is, but placebo leave again.

the public screams again, i am caught somewhere between fear and hope, it can't have been all, but what if...? no, people keep shouting, it can't be over, and this time i'm sure it's an encore, yes, placebo are back, steve, the guitar player heads through the crowd, brian apologises for being late and for the technical problems, thanks the public for their patience and the incredible atmosphere, promises that "they'll be back soon", i know it's a nice thing to say but i can't refrain from hoping, and i still do... next up is twenty years, and yes, after that they are gone for good.

faithless - why go

Another band I am sorry not having seen live, because I think they put up a show to behold are Faithless. And funny thing is, I could've made it to a gig in Budapest and catch Placebo there too the next day had I known of a trip on which a colleague went. I don't like all of Faithless' stuff, but they have some amazing songs. I find this one very uplifting and with a video to match. :)

bryan adams - run to you

And since we've started with concerts... first one I've ever been to was Bryan Adams. That's what being high must feel like. Loads of memories connected to this one. I still have the concert poster on the door of my room. One of my fave Bryan Adams songs, though it's hard to pick just one was Run to You, I really love the beat of this one. And... I love what Bryan does as a photographer too. He really seems the type of guys who does what he does for fun and believing in it and that is inspiring.

rolling stones - love is strong

Starting out the concert series: I have friends bugging me to go to the Rolling Stones concert in Bucharest on July 17. Thus, I am bugging other friends to come with me and so on. Now I can't say I am a big Stones knower or liker. But it's probably my only chance to see them in concert before one of them snuffs it (yeah, that was mean) and I know that I'll probably scratch out my eyes if I don't go, so I will probably yield to temptation. This is one of my favourite Stones song, along with Anybody Seen My Baby. It is simply H.O.T.

depeche mode - walking in my shoes

Depeche Mode... hm, the first time I heard about them was from a gang of guys in my neighbourhoood when I was a little girl... maybe... dunno 6 or 7? They were in their teens and generally not well regarded by the parents. And they have been blamed for writing on the walls in the stair halls and scratching stuff into the paint. One of them was a rose with DM written underneath :)

The first song of theirs that I have heard was probably Enjoy the Silence or maybe Personal Jesus. Not knowledgeable enough to call myself a fan, but whenever I hear a song of theirs, it usually hits home. This one here is one of my faves. Great lyrics, give them a read.

matchbox twenty - if you're gone

It was only a matter of time till another MB20 would show up on the blog again. I work in a 24/7 call center, which is obviously a shift jobs. A thing which I like because there are always people willing to take on my morning shifts and leave me their afternoon ones, which is vital for a late sleeper like me :). However, my favourite shifts, of which I unfortunately don't get enough, are night shifts. I love the peace and quiet of it. No one around the building (well, except the door guards and the firemen, but they are on ground floor, I'm on the fourth). I stay awake till 4-4:30 am if I am given the chance anyway, so there's no big deal in prolonging that till 7 am. Usually no one's calling in, so I am left to fill my time.

Am on nightshift right now. I brought a stash of cd's with me to which I haven't listened in a while. It was like meeting up with dear old friends. I know them by heart, they have memories and feelings connected to them, I know I like them every time I rediscover them... and they always stir that something in me that made me like them in the first place. I absolutely love Matchbox Twenty. Everything they've ever done. I got their three albums in Barcelona a couple of years ago. Oh, the thrill of the chase, the joy of the discovery, the relief of the prey, the extasy of fitting them into my rather tight budget... :)

This one is off their second hit album, Mad Season. This is a live acoustic version.

I think Ive already lost you
I think youre already gone
I think Im finally scared now
You think Im weak - but I think youre wrong
I think youre already leaving
Feels like your hand is on the door
I thought this place was an empire
But now Im relaxed - I cant be sure

I think youre so mean - I think we should try
I think I could need - this in my life
I think Im just scared - I think too much
I know this is wrong its a problem Im dealing

If youre gone - maybe its time to go home
Theres an awful lot of breathing room
But I can hardly move
If youre gone - baby you need to come home
Cuz theres a little bit of something me
In everything in you

I bet youre hard to get over
I bet the room just wont shine
I bet my hands I can stay here
I bet you need - more than you mind

I think youre so mean - I think we should try
I think I could need - this in my life
I think Im just scared - that I know too much
I cant relate and thats a problem Im feeling

If youre gone - maybe its time to go home
Theres an awful lot of breathing room
But I can hardly move
If youre gone - baby you need to come home
Cuz theres a little bit of something me
In everything in you

I think youre so mean - I think we should try
I think I could need - this in my life
I think Im just scared - do I talk too much
I know this is wrong its a problem Im dealing

If youre gone - maybe its time to go home
Theres an awful lot of breathing room
But I can hardly move
If youre gone - baby you need to come home
Cuz theres a little bit of something me
In everything in you

goo goo dolls - here is gone

When I first heard Iris, I instantly fell in love with the song. It... touched something. Much later did I see the movie City of Angels of which it was part of the soundtrack and made the connection to the lyrics. For a long, long time, it was the only song I knew from the band. Slowly, I discovered more and Goo Goo Dolls are definitely in my top ten bands now with Here Is Gone being one of the faves. I remember either reading or hearing a piece of trivia at some point. I guess 12 years waiting for international success (they were formed in 1986, Iris was released in 1998) can do that to you: before Iris made it big, singer/songwriter John Rzeznik had serious self-esteem problems regarding his songwriting skills. I think his songwriting skills are fucking amazing, but judge for yourselves.

metallica - enter sandman

Well, in this post I am not going to tell you how I've finally discovered Metallica. That's another story and another song. The only Metallica song I thought I liked at that time (and now you know it, huh?). Hey, I was in denial. I knew a song with the title Enter Sandman existed but wasn't even curious about it as there couldn't have possibly been another song of the band I might like.

So why am I posting this instead of taking it nice, from the beginning? Well, because lately I am in a Metallica / Guns'n'Roses mood to the extent of downloading three albums each last night. This was further fueled by precisely this song coming up on MTV - I was heavily impressed :) And... the song still rocks when a Bolivian guy sings it in English in an Irish pub in Germany top the delight of three Romanian fellows. Hey dude... you should've won! Well, if this song can withstand globalization, it can withstand anything! Now turn up your volume and take my hand... we're off to Never Neverland.

röyksopp - what else is there?

I became aware of Röyksopp back from Poor Leno, though right now I remember the video rather than the song, though I remember liking it. Poor Leno really made me sad :(. I absolutely love this track and the video is... well... let's call it freakish. And I am proud to say that I recognised the voice as belonging to the chick singing in The Knife, from what brief but intensive exposure I've had to the band from a friend (cheer!) - hey, I'm a fast learner. Come to think of it, I need to dig deeper on The Knife... Another band added on the 'check out list'. The girl's name is Karin Dreijer Andersson. I don't know it, I've looked it up. Shame on me. And I call myself a person who has taken Swedish lessons and wants to take them up again.

red hot chili peppers - under the bridge

I have no problems calling this song a classic. I used to have problems liking it because my brother said it was good and then, in my mind, it wasn't supposed to be. But now, years later... hey, he was right. Not even All Saints managed to ruin it completely >:) I am glad the Peppers have emerged from the nineties and are still going strong. So, ladies and gentlemen, presenting you with probably the best love song for a city ever written: Under the Bridge.

u2 - beautiful day

Back by public request... and not really. I've thought and thought what to post today, seeing as it is my birthday. Since nothing smarter than this came up, since I love u2, since... hey, it is a beautiful day (actually, it rained heavily, but then again I love rain)... I am going to spare you another mile long entry and just let you enjoy the song and charge yourself with some energy. :)