I'll keep a little tavern
Below the high hill's crest,
Wherein all grey-eyed people
May set them down and rest.
There shall be plates a-plenty,
And mugs to melt the chill
Of all the grey-eyed people
Who happen up the hill.
There sound will sleep the traveller,
And dream his journey's end,
But I will rouse at midnight
The falling fire to tend.
Aye, 'tis a curious fancy—
But all the good I know
Was taught me out of two grey eyes
A long time ago.
Nothing's wrong, I'm fine.
Really, no need to worry.
Ain't a thought of anyone cute or hot,
and their partners and prejudices.
No worry for family members either,
tho they're not healthy
and have so many burdens too.
There's nawt wront at school at all,
classes are boring but I'm OK.
See, I smile and I eat,
I just don't go out with others
simply 'cos I don't want to.
Being fooled again and again
doesn't bother me:
if that's their best, so be it.
Talk to me and I'll listen.
Really doesn't matter
if I can't talk to you,
you're busy, I understand that.
I also tend to forget things,
don't fret about it.
Why would I expect you to
pay attention to and
sacrifice time for me?
We're only said to be friends.
It shouldn't include
care and interest, right?
Right. I'm perfectly alright.
Do what you feel like doing,
you know I'll be there
to catch you when you fall.
I have my wings, rest assured.
I'm here...have been and will be,
probably, forever.
I ain't tired of it.
It's my life.
I'm having all the fun
lying on my bed with
music coming from my headphones,
and answering emergency calls
whenever they come in.
One week ago at this time I've already been standing in front of a stage that had two giant M's on each side, for like an hour. I've always been envious of people entering the venues earlier than, well yeah, myself - and the rest of a large crowd; this time I was among those staring back out at those poor fellows who've been being burnt by the sun for a day or so. Of course, once being inside, the waiting resumes, but hey: at least you have your fix spot and don't have to overworry yourself about that!
The huge M's were basically telling us that something great's about to happen: we had no idea how true that was! After a poke in the back for Mr Benassi, telling him that he should finish DJing, and some more mins of arranging the stage - the lights went out, and no surprise: Madonna appeared on her throne, surrounded by her dancers. No surprise I say, because for one, of course everyone was expecting her; and for two, diehard fans like me all saw the Hard Candy promo tour and the opening act of Candy Shop was not much different this time either. Good or bad? Well, I say good. The song itself might not be much, but the live performance boosts it up way much. ^.^ Btw, candy shops - the first things I felt like missing. What with the rainbow colors, and the album's concept and everything, I was sure that there'd be candy stands all around, but there were none. Too bad, I think, but oh well.
Beat Goes On is another of those "nothing special" songs, but with the white car, it was made somewhat special as well; on the other hand, the following Human Nature just didn't fit in there for me. What's the point, I mean? Especially with Britney in the backdrop video. ... Not that I have anything against her, but still. Not to mention I had a feeling I've seen and heard this before, and it's quite right: Human Nature + guitar = Drowned World Tour. That was like 7 years ago. Um, alright... then came another song that's sorta been played so many times it's almost boring: Vogue. But, this time it actually wasn't playback-cuz-of-the-dancing, but live singing. Everyone's allowed to decide whether it added any extra value to it.
Then came the first "gift" for me: despite not being live singing, the Die Another Day mix with the background video was just AWESOME! That's like, the third version of the song that can't be not-loved, after the album version and the Dirty Vegas Mix. ^.^ Tho I'm still not sure about how the candy factory (see the opening video) turned into a boxing ring... o.O and of course, M herself was only "boxing" in the video: it had a slight intimidating aura of "if i go out and really fight, noone will stand a chance". Quite nice. :P And following it came the second "gift" song for me. Two years ago I was almost furious at her, cuz I couldn't understand how on earth Into The Groove could be left out from an "I want to turn the world into a dance floor" tour!? Now she made up for it, with such a silly-cute concept to it as well that was really sticky and sweet. xD Basically, ITG was the opening song of the second act, oldschool / early days. Something idk how Heartbeat fit into, but that followed ITG anyway. And then the third "gift": Borderline! Yes, right from the first album from '83, and at that, a song that she hasn't performed live since the Virgin Tour. *_* Perfect fit for early days. Like, THE perfectest. :P
And if we thought the show was going GREAT so far, well we got a slap in the face. That's being She's Not Me, which is a really nifty song on its own already, but the way it was performed.............with a brilliant-to-the-point-of-being-freaky backdrop montage edited together from M's earlier videos, from the very first to the very latest, showing slideshow-like the most prominent faces of the Queen. AND, with her four most prominent costumes as well, being worn by "dolls" who were actual dancers and appeared somewhere mid-song at the end of the catwalk. Of course, "cheap knockoffs", they were all "disgraced" by the one and only Madonna. FANTASTIC!!!
If you're asked, as a fan, to name M's most minimalist hit, there's quite a chance that you'll say: Music. Yes, Music is very - nothing. And still, a live performance just fills it with so much meaning, noone can argue it's her absolute greatest (or is in the top 3 anyway) song! Something that's been done and shown again: it was her music that brought us all together once again. You can't get this feeling back from webcasts or concert DVD, go and experience it on the spot. Won't be able to compare it to anything.
Two years ago, and sorry for so many references but they're needed, one of the best songs/performances of the Confessions Tour was Paradise, for me anyway. And no, she didn't bring Isaac back, and if I wanna be honest, not even the sakuras. But, there was a faint resemblance in a few moments of the Here Comes The Rain Again video interlude, that made it awfully lovely for me. And not just that, if you remember the performance of Isaac back then, Devil Wouldn't Recognize You is strikingly similar to it: the large black cloak, the (this time cylinder-shaped screen serving as a) cage, and inside, this time, M herself, on the top of a piano... breathtaking, really. Not only the performance, but together with the lyrics too. The fourth "gift", and one of those that, as a whole, makes me call M not a singer, not an entertainer, but an Artist. She always manages to create something that's able to touch you somewhere deep within, not in a definable way, but you feel it...and it's The Experience. Really.
And just to contrast it again: Spanish Lesson followed the Devil, with the Spanish words written on the screens in a way that made them look Arabian; while on a more personal level, I wouldn't've included this song in the setlist at all. x.x Prolly it's just something with me, but I think it's the weakest of Hard Candy, and this time, not even the live performance made any difference. Then, after the anti-favorite, what else could have come than one of the faves: Miles Away? It's such a multi-layered song, really. One way to interpret it as it is; but with M singing it live on stage, singing it for us, in a way prolly ABOUT us, on the other hand we just turn the table. While waking up from a dream in the middle of a concert sounds obscure, "outsiders" really would never believe the things we experience at her concerts, the things after which really none of us will ever be the same. And she really always have the biggest heart, giving us 110%, and when she's gone, we really always realize that she's the best thing that's ever happened to us! ... Sounds too poetic, yeah right, maybe. Go experience it on your own - of course, you have to be a fan tho.
La Isla Bonita is another one of those ever-green songs that no matter how or when they come, they always make the dark and cloudy days sunny and nice. The Confessions Tour mix of it was a brilliant party/dance version, add some gypsy-sorta spice to it and you'll get the Sticky & Sweet alternative. So, on with the dancing shoes once again, and don't you dare stop partying! ^.^ Whoever says whatever about making music for one's own entertainment - bullshit. THIS THERE AND THEN was really about making music just for the sake of it: being together, having a great time, so let's have more fun! ...well, most certainly had. A mille grazie!
Just to relax after intense dancing for a few mins, here came some shivers. Oh, of the good kind of course. The stadium chanting "Evita! Evita!", and M starting a song that she never performed on a tour so far: You Must Love Me. *_* Well, thanks for the reminder, but we do love you, you know? What on earth would we be here for right now otherwise?! Still, another "gift", a real gem. ... Smash it? Of course! With the thing that generated the greatest controversy in S&S: the Get Stupid video interlude. Starting off as a parody of today's advertisements, it turns into a shock-therapy kinda slideshow of horrible images happening around the globe, and of the most notorious world-leaders of past and present. Last time, she managed to make us cry with Live To Tell; now she managed to make us feel just BAD, and right in the middle of a party again. You can start dissing the thing, but in that case I'll say you don't get the concept. Get Stupid is a most genial punch in the face of the media and politics flooding us with SHIT: if that's allowed (even encouraged in some cases?) to flow, then here's her mirror to it, to whatever's covered up with the empty, meaningless stuffs. And just as a sidenote, she appeared in the best outfits in that less-than-3-mins video. Congrats and bow.
To recover from the shock, she gave us 4 Minutes - that was accepted with a great ovation. Which, frankly, I don't really get: there were much stronger songs on Hard Candy as well as in the setlist, but oh well. At least Like A Prayer made up for it, and once again I was left unable to decide whether it's a song to just dance, or something deeper, more spiritual? Either way, one of her greatest once again, that's sure. And Ray Of Light, well, with a bit different concept than before, um just okay I think, but this one was seen one too many times too, mainly with this guitar-rock-ish performance. Re-invent, please!
Idk if there's gonna be another tour of which the concert dates will be Holidays once again, cuz we "only" got Hung Up this time too. As much as it's again an "aired-too-many-times" song, with the chess-video in the background, I really enjoyed it. Somehow peculiar, which gave it a fresh taste - something I wouldn't mind seeing done to a few other tracks as well. But then...I knew Give It 2 Me was a must, and when I heard it, my first thought was: omg, why did they remix THIS?! As it went on tho, the lights, the lasers, the rave-like mix: I was converted. Bloody brilliant, and impossible not to dance to, even if you've spent hours or the whole day or afternoon standing in queues.
All too soon tho (no matter how long a mix is, if it's good, it can't be long enough), the song came to an end and everyone disappeared from the stage and we were left staring at a GAME OVER text displayed on the screens. ... Er, 'scuse me, where's the confetti/balloon/goldenribbon rain? Where's the "thank you, good night"? ... Just, where's the ENDING?! :O
So yeah, maybe making a point of "there's no beginning and there's no ending", but I felt a baffled. It's like the show didn't end at all, but they were already taking the stage apart!!! WTH?...
In any case, the show was professional. To the max. And, there's no telling she's 50. Rather, 20-something with the same amount of - no, not years, just experience. I could have done with a bit more communication with the audience, and a (at least indirect) thanks to her crew, cuz as she said two years ago: she couldn't do it without them. But apart from these, I can't wait the next occasion: if there really is no ending, she shouldn't keep us waiting for long. ^.^
Why? Well, those several small nuisances are just getting to be too much.
First, right here, I can't write a blog post, cuz for whatever reason, clicking in this text field just - won't do anything. So I can't even start typing. And that happens elsewhere too, field here, a button there: I'd click and do my thing, but I can't because the site won't work as it should, if it responds at all.
Second, sometimes sites just don't seem to want to load at all. Take GMail for example. I type gmail.com in the address field, press enter...and it's loading and loading and loading forever. I type mail.google.com in, and it works okay - other times it's the other way around, but totally random. While with other browsers, both addresses work ok. Same goes for Hotmail and Yahoo! sometimes as well. Not to mention some features of these latter ones are still not supported under Opera.
And that brings us to the next entry: support. Ok, Flash and ShockWave mostly work now. Mostly. But there isn't a week when I wouldn't run into at least one site telling me to use to either IE or FireFox. Oh and where's PicLens too? Nowhere. Nokia PC Suite still can't synchronize bookmarks with Opera, nor do some other programs offer Opera as an option when there's a list a browsers to choose from. Why, I'm asking?
And one of the most annoying "features": missed clicks. Right-click menu up, selecting an item (say, copy to note, or open in background) - and nothing happens. Every once in a while it's been like this since version 9.5 I think, but maybe earlier...I'm not sure. Idk if it only occurs for me, but they still didn't fix it. Why?
Add to all that that there still isn't a normal backup/restore feature or program to save those profile parts, like bookmarks, notes, passwords, etc... why? Especially when so many other features FireFox still needs add-ons for have long been implemented into the program itself.
...
So, with all that, my problem now is the following. IE is just no good of course; FireFox has a good x64 version (not just for Linux - hello, Opera, ftw?), but no PicLens support for that either (yet, I hope?). I wonder if there's a proper x64 browser with PicLens support out there...?
I swear if I didn't know better, that'd be one of my guesses. But as it ain't realy plausible, seeing Qore and the plans of in-game dynamic ads (here), I settle with them getting back to their "let's-juice-out-every-single-penny-of-customers" policy...yuck. Honestly, they must not have enough money if they're in such dire need of every single cent... oh well. ~Can't wait~ to see what an Abercrombie or a McDonald's ad will look like in, say, Final Fantasy XIII, or something like that. And then the next step of course, will be when even 3rd-party companies will be outta the picture, cuz they'll need space for things like Blu-ray media, CyberShot (lol!) phones, and so on, and so on ~~~
Several weeks after the release of M's latest album, supported by numerous promo concerts, and the hype (hysteria, chaos, you name it) about the Sticky & Sweet Tour, I think it's time I revise my early review of Hard Candy.
While I do have to maintain my original views, ie, the album is ... somewhat less than what I expected, making it not hard at all, at least it's sweet. Sort of. What do I mean? Well, with that cover and title, I for one would surely have expected at least one "fuck" or "shit" or some such dropped in one of the lyrics somewhere, but there ain't no such a thing. I swear Alanis outdoes M-dolla there, with Flavors Of Entanglement, and I bet she never thought of competing in it. Oh well. Candy Shop, well, with that live performance she did at the promo concerts (and which I believe we'll see again at the Tour), it is a lot better, sort of filled with meaning, finally. Well, a certain amount, anyway. 4 Minutes is still second weakest for me - Spanish Lesson can't be overtaken there being as horrible as possible, I honestly don't know why these two songs made the final tracklist and Ring My Bell only the Japanese edition's. Give It 2 Me however is simply fantastic, by far the strongest song on the whole album, quickly followed by She's Not Me, tho I still don't really know if it's good to practically transfer samples from one track to another, within one album; the lyrics make up for it anyway.
Heartbeat, Miles Away, and Incredible are okay as they are, I guess ... nothing too special. Beat Goes On and Dance 2Night however still can't convince me enough...nor can Devil and Voices really. Devil just still reminds me too much of Kylie's Red Blooded Woman, while Voices... rephrase that first line: "Who is the garden, who is the snake?" - yikes. And still ~one bell short~, so to speak.
So, all in all, after a lot of repeated listening, I still don't think I should give HC an A. Maybe stepped up to a B from a C, but that's all. And I never actually went to buy the special edition of this one. Unlike American Life and Confessions, which I grabbed on release day, I just kept thinking and thinking and thinking about this one ... but you know what? Rather a Japanese import. At least that one has the extra song.
See the thing here.
Now, to start with, I've never understood even why the usage is so limited to certain countries. Honestly. Can someone answer that? Well, maybe this is an explanation: cuz it ain't free. What the...?! Yeah, right. I get all excited, the damn thing is finally already available at this country of nowhere I live in ... go install ... then comes the warning that there'll be fee to pay later on. ~Dear~ Micro$oft, with all due respect (...my butt!), why the fuck do you have to make a service, that's been forever free, all of a sudden not-free?! For me it'd seem they seriously want to drive ppl away from using their stuff, cuz with this, they surely aim at it. Or they just don't get enough money (...my butt again!) from all their other products. Or fuck knows, but please if anyone figures it out, inform me.
Til then, I'm gonna wait for the pay-by-login feature to get implemented into Windows Se7en. <_<
Well, after all the time spent with avoiding any and all possible spoilers, including deliberately NOT listening to or even watching 4 Minutes either, today was the day - I got to this piece of candy at long last. Of course I was damn excited, I loved every ounce of Confessions, together with the extra tracks and remixes and the tour, and I've expected nothing less. That is, until I learnt whom she'd be working together... and sadly, my fears were not too much unjustified.
On one hand, I've been sceptical about Justin. No offense, but I just can't stand him, a ~made~ star with an annoyingly high-pitched voice, pushing the relationships theme in such a sexist way that could compete any standard black rapper... yikes. On the other hand, Timbaland has been okay in my books, got the talent and all; true tho that even he turned a bit shallow lately. And basically that was all I knew about the album and nothing more.
Then there came the 411 on the Special Edition, containing TWO REMIXes. x_x Whyyyyyyyy??? I swear, it's a headache for me: get the Japanese import without the special wrapping but containing the extra track, or the special ed without the extra track? Hmph. Minus one point. '>_> Pondering that, I looked up the tracklist on Wiki... and the first thing was: wtf's with these titles??? Candy Shop, Give It 2 Me, Heartbeat, She's Not Me, Beat Goes On, Spanish Lesson, Voices - just the ones that made me think immediately, cuz it was just too much on one album that I've already seen, or at least made those ripples on the surface of my mind's quiet lake. Not to mention two other names: Kanye and Danja. ... Er, alright, no prejudices, that's just wrong, let's listen to it first. Well, I did... didn't intend to compare each of the tracks to other ones tho, but I can't help it, this album contains just too many vague, or not-so-vauge references for me, that it's starting to give me a buzz in the back of my mind.
Candy Shop - um, is that a cheap ($0.5...) knock-off? ... No, wait, it starts rather like Give It To Me ... er, the Timbs+Nelly+Justin one, I mean ... and that tick-tocking is just TOO Hung Up, almost painfully ... and that's it, basically, frankly, I still have no idea what to make of this track. o_O And this is just one such.
4 Minutes - Okay, track time is almost exactly 4 mins, yeah, nice pun ... aaaaand? What more? Nothing, really. Like an uptempo version of Hey You, but this one doesn't even really make a point, much less any coherent lyrics. Why on earth make a single and video of this one, I can't understand.
Give It 2 Me - Just good. ^_^ Third track on the album, first one that caught me for the very first time I heard it. Prolly the slight Music Inferno aftertaste has something to do with it (one of my favorite of the Confessions Tour *_*), but WHO CARES?! Tis great, go party! ^_^ Wondering about why this title again... x_x
Heartbeat - or is it Heartbeat Rock by Kylie? Couldn't tell easily, apart from the title, the two songs also partially shares some basic tunes/rhythm I think, so, er....?
Miles Away - no comment; another of those I've no idea what to do with. *shrugs*
She's Not Me - is it me, or does this really play some (unintentional?) pun on Robbie Williams's (idk-wtf-to-do-with-it-) She's Madonna track? ... Oh well, nvm, again a slight Music Inferno tinge in the background, making it somewhat okay. ^.^"
Incredible - see Miles Away.
Beat Goes On - Eugh. I fled from Kanye's Daft Punk mix as well, so not surprisingly ... just one thing: WHY?! x_x
Dance 2night - see Incredible.
Spanish Lesson - to be honest, I liked Spanish Eyes much better. A friend of mine said for Push of Confessions that it's too forced and thus just horrible: well, I think I now know what she felt when she said that... :/
Devil Wouldn't Recognize You - well, my first thought was rather Mariah Carey when I first heard this ... but then somehow it didn't sound all that bad compared to some of the other flavors of this candy. So, okay I guess.
Voices - idk if anyone remembers a song of the same title by a certain Ann Lee (don't think so), back from the nineties, but yeah, despite of the totally different tunes and rhythm, I did get the same feeling upon listening to it. Is it good? Still on my to-do list to decide.
Overall ... well, Her Highness said that she wanted her last release by Warner to be a big hit. And also that she thought about what music she listened to lately, what she fancied, and then came up with the idea of working together with the people she did eventually. With all due respect Madge, you yourself said that too that it was kinda strange, since you were used to working on your own - maybe just do so next time, please. Getting inspiration is one thing, but when the uniqueness, the individual is sacrificed on that altar, it just does no good. Too many "I've heard this before" impression in this ~56 minutes: way too repetitive; not to mention I can't find Madonna among Timbs and Justin and Kanye and Danja and co (like Britney and Nelly). If I'm allowed one more comparison: I felt a bit like with Mariah's latest release. Both E=MC2 and Hard Candy wants to be a continuation of their predecessors, but all in all, while I absolutely loved every minute of both Emancipation of Mimi and Confessions On A Dance Floor, I simply don't see the point of the "successors".
Maybe it'd be better for Madonna to leave the dancefloor AND the mainstream profit-oriented electronic music as well for the next studio release, and give us some more opinionated, more meaningful content. ... Or just an unplugged acoustic something, which is still a dream of mine; and some slower ballads that I've been missing since Ray Of Light.
