40 Records in 40 Years (35/40 - 2008)

As I have already indicated the last time, dark clouds have gathered in my horizon. I told that lots of work should be done until a fixed date. Therefore I worked often for more than ten hours a day. And in this time my social contacts have suffered very strongly. I arrived often close to 8 p.m. and didn't want more than a couple of drinks. During the weekends I slept for many hours and if I arrived in my scene I was often angry and was looking for some trouble. Finally I had to accept that I suffer on a burn-out syndrom. It has lasted more than 10 months with psychological support to me to get back in my  on in my working and private life again. That might be the reason why I don't know much about this year. Sure we were on vacation but if it was in India or Thailand again - I really don't know.

What I remember was these records which was released in this year:

• Foals - Antidote: Fine Indie-pop from Qxford
• Grace Jones - Hurricane: Good to have her back
• Flying Lotus - Los Angeles: Wonderful electronic music inspired by Jazz, HipHop and Electro
• The Kills - Midnight Boom: Indie-rock at the height of time
• Fleet Foxes - same: They remind me at the best times of CSN&Y
• Vampire Weekend - same: The album of the year you could agree with the most
• Walter Becker - Circus Money: One half of Steely Dan made a timeless record
• Carla Bruni - Comme si de rien n'était: That's how she sounded before she's got Sarkozy 

This are some songs I used to listen in this year:

And as usual - some movies I can remember:

• Slumdog Millionaire: Fantastic story about love and getting successful 
• Mama Mia: Just an entertaining movie for the family
• A Quantum of Solace: Daniel Craig is the best James Bond since Connery
• The Wrestler: Is he acting or is he playing the way he is?
• The Reader: Fantastic novel and fantastic movie as well
• RocknRolla: Guy Ritchie's back
• Gran Torino: One more remarkable move by Mr. Eastwood

When I go back into 2008 than I will remember this:

Subprime Mortgage Crisis starts all over the world // Fidel Castro announces his resignation as President of Cuba // Rising food and fuel prices trigger riots and unrest in the Third World // An earthquake in Sichuan, China kills nearly 80000 people // Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe is reelected again with more than 85% of the votes - why, knows nobody // First political crisis in Thailand and it will go on for years // Barack Obama is elected as the 44th President of the United States.

If you have never been into House music before you should listen to Hercules and Love Affair. As I listened to it the first time I thought by myself: Oh my god, what a sensational crossbreed from Chicago House, postal punk and a lot of disco. Disco rouses rather – not necessarily positive – associations with John Travolta, afro-wigs and plateau shoes for semi amusing motto parties. For Andrew Butler, the head of Hercules And Love Affair, an unfortunate development, but quite only surely stimulus to present his debut album at the old age of 29 years him goes back directly to the roots of disco and House. Has helped him in it beside his label DFA which is anyway known for excursions in the past of the dance music, above all his long-standing friend Antony Hegarty by Antony & The Johnsons. Though his eccentric-artificial song also a little bit needs getting used to here, however, "Hercules And Love Affair" lends, in the end, the cream bonnet to divaism in which the coming decay already stands out.

The tension which lies in this is perceptible from the first second. "Time wants tell" hits with tender guitar picking about a taken back housebeat so softly against the beach like the waves on the party island Ibiza early in the evening if the sun stands quite close over the sea. In addition Antony sings beseechingly lines like "Be true to me / Be true to me, my love". Legend once again one, electronic music has no soul." Hercules' theme" gets free, powered by propelling blowers, from this gravity and rather straps on the disco scooters. With "You belong" the album enters in a Chicago House saloon slowly at the deep night from which "You belong to him tonight / There is nothing I can do" painful dissolving about the track climbs. After this lonesome excursion to the darkness the first single "Blind" again starts the reflecting ball - with pluckering disco bass, whipping handclaps and blower's fanfares in a good mood which are transferred at the end in a melancholy subdued trumpet and dramatic synthies. And about all the glamorous falsetto of Antony which nowhere fits sits enthroned better than here.

Hercules & Love Affair - Time Will
Hercules & Love Affair - Hercules' Theme
Hercules & Love Affair - You Belong
Hercules & Love Affair - Blind
Hercules & Love Affai - Athene

Blind

Only when I have come back from my vacation I have got to know, the Frankie Knuckles has passed away too early. All the words about him are said and I don't want to add more. He guided me into another kind of music, that I didn't knew before. So I have to say thank you and may you rest in peace, Frankie.

Hercules & Love Affair - Blind (Frankie Knuckles Remix)

Bride and Groom

Few days ago we were invited to a Sri Lankan wedding. The wedding flow is totally different to one Western people are used to. First there is no bachelor - celebrating with your friends and also no hangover possiblle. As we used to marry in the curch them people don't because there are less christians round here. The blessing of God will be given by a Hindu priest to the couple in a short ceremony. After that they start to photograph bride and groom on hundreds of pictures. Meanwhile the traditional starter was prepeared and served. For western tongues it is more a desert than a starter, because it came as cupcakes and other sweeties. After that a band starts playing or (like in our case) a DJ starts his set.

This is mostly the signal for the man to leave the table and go outside (if the celebration is in a hotel) or seperate when it's outside. Then they order their local whiskey called Arrack and some soft drinks and tonic and they start talking about nearly everything. So it goes on for some hours. Between talking, drinking and somking you can get up for some lunch and come back to the men's table.

Women, older persons and kids stay during this time on their tables, enjoying music, talking to them others or having lunch. After the men's drinking conversation is finished, everyone joins the band/DJ to dance for a while. And so slowly ends the celebration that normaly don't go longer as four/five hours. Than the wedding couple leaves and the party is over. Normally the celebration ends in late afternoon and a lot of guys want to continue the party. So hey form some groups, which then party at their respective places of residence - mostly till late night.

Todays track is the XX-cover from 'Sheler' done by Hercules And Love Affair.

Enjoy

Hercules & Love Affair - Shelter

Blind

Sometimes it's strange how fast the time passes by. You listen to a song thinking you heard it one or maybe two years ago for the first time. If you crawl the Internet for the date or release you'll be surprised that it was already five years ago that this track was first released. This happened to me when Hercules and Love Affair shuffled on my player with their first song 'Blind'. I am really not a big fan of Anthony Hagerty and his Johnsons (the sound is too depressive and I can't stand his falsetto songs not longer than three songs in a row) but in this song his voice fits like non else.

Hercules and Love Affair - Blind (Frankie Knuckles Remix)