The Wheel and Axle

I discovered Slovenian musical group Perpetuum Jazzile a few months back on YouTube, and if you’ve never heard or seen them, it’s time to correct that.

Punch your cards and cut loose, folks.

Happy weekend!

(continue reading…)

Sometimes, especially on a holiday, you just want to disco. Don’t even try to deny it.

(Can you believe this was almost forty years ago? This also would’ve been considered somewhat scandalous back then, but it just seems so tame in the now.)

Earlier this week, September 5th, would’ve been Freddie Mercury’s 70th birthday. It’s also been nearly 25 years since the legend from Queen passed away. Despite the loss of this icon, his music and legacy live on, propelling the art forward through the influence he left behind.

Belated happy birthday, Freddie. Your rhapsody lives on.

I recently finally got to watch the banned version of Madonna’s music video for American Life.

As a Madonna fanatic, I’ll be the first to say that, when the song was released, I wasn’t exactly fond of it. It must’ve been the rap. Madonna, my queen, I love you, but unless it’s Vogue‘s spoken portion, please never rap again.

However, watching this banned video, hindsight once again schools me to show just how ahead of her time Madonna really was (and continues to be).

(continue reading…)

Madonna + Ukrainian Gymnasts = Art Levels Up.

This was perfection, and I could watch it over and over again, endlessly wondering, “How the hell did they do that?” and simply just… applauding.

Video credits: BBC Sports

I’ve already said quite a lot about the one and only goddess, the living legend, a true diva and icon – and how much she has inspired me throughout the decades.

So today, I will keep it simple, celebrate, and just say…

(continue reading…)

Earlier this week, we remembered the great Whitney Houston on her birthday.

It’s such serendipity that I then came across this new a capella group that did such a wonderful cover of one of her most memorable hits. I love a capella groups, and when they can do such a fantastic tribute, I love them even more.

(continue reading…)

Genius.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart will always be my favorite classical musician. He is a genius who started composing at the age of five, and he has created marvelous musical works of various genres: sonatas, concertos, operas, symphonies, and more.

My love for Mozart began sometime in the early 90s when I first saw the 1984 Oscar Best Picture winner Amadeus, a biographical drama that took some liberties with historical facts and utilized some of the more legendary stories surrounding the man.

(continue reading…)

Despite the controversies that hounded her in her latter years, Whitney Houston will always be a true icon of music. Hers had been a golden voice that few could ever match. As with Madonna, Prince, and Michael Jackson, Whitney embodied the 80s so much that she was a legend by the time the 90s rolled around.

Her last few years were tumultuous, to say the least. Domestic violence, drug abuse, inability to perform properly during concerts: yes, these happened. Yes, these put her through some truly dark times. And with the circumstances surrounding her death, one cannot help but sometimes wonder if there was anything else that she, or the people around her, or even her fans, could have done to prevent her downward spiral into her untimely demise.

(continue reading…)

Fifty-one years ago today, the Beatles released in the UK one of my favorite songs ever in their discography. Nothing more needs to be said.