Music, music, music.

I love watching music videos online right before I fall asleep. There’s something very magical and soothing about this new routine I started a few months back; in a way, it’s a form of mediation for me.

While I like to keep up with the current music scene, there is a lot of stuff I find myself always going back to. Music that in my eyes, will never get old. I also pick up a lot of my musical tastes from the movies I watch, old and new.

Here are a few artists I can’t get enough of at the moment:

• Father John Misty – Nancy From Now On and Hollywood Forever Cemetery Sings (also, a live and absolutely amazing version of Nancy From Now On)
• Awolnation – Sail
• Hugo – 99 Problems
• Tycho – A Walk
• Iggy Alazea – Work
• Kreayshawn – Bumpin Bumpin
• Youth – Daughter
• Parachutes – Paper Birds
• Mogwai – Take Me Somewhere Nice
• Low – Lullaby
• Fleet Foxes – The Shrine / An Argument
• Atoms For Peace – Default

Enjoy.

 

Welcome, Vogue

It gives me great joy to write this post and even though it may be slightly old news, I’m extremely proud that this month marks Ukraine’s first ever issue of Vogue.

This is Vogue‘s 21st international edition, with Daria Werbowy gracing the cover. The editor in chief, Masha Tsukanova, has been named as the “new face in the front lines of fashion” in Ukraine.

The luxury market in Kiev seems to be making great strides and Tsukanova was recently in Paris to promote the new magazine to designers, models and photographers.

And although Elle, Harper’s Bazaar and Marie Claire have already made an appearance in the Ukrainian market, Vogue plans to climb to the top by taking command.

I love Tsukanova’s article for the first issue, which sparked some controversy with the more traditional readers, “Surprisingly, Ukrainian society appears to be very conservative. But someone should start the conversation. A woman is not just somebody’s wife or mother. A woman is an independent person, and she should take care of her life.”

2013 Oscars Fashion Round Up

This year’s Red Carpet fashions didn’t impress me too much, could be my mood, but there were a few favourites:

Top reads

Lullabies for Little Criminals – Heather O’Neill

Scar Tissue – Anthony Kiedis

Fall to Pieces – Mary Weiland

Kitchen Confidential – Anthony Bourdain

Heart of a Dog – Mikhail Bulgakov

Professor Dowell’s Head – Alexander Belyayev

The Amphibian Man – Alexander Belyayev

The Air Seller – Alexander Belyayev

Tiger Eyes – Judy Blume

Are You There God? It’s me, Margaret – Judy Blume

 

Collision

The nausea came over me right away like a thick blanket, sending my head into a spiral of dizziness.

I had experienced motion sickness ever since I was little.

The bus driver hot th breaks once more and I felt my insides bounce up into my throat. I lifted off the seat to ge a better view of what was going on in front of us and to my dismay, a long, snake-like trail of cars dragged its way up to the horizon line. In the distance, I could barely make out what seemed to be a horrific collision, blocking more than half of the lanes heading east on the 401. I instantly became even sicker.

The shortest bus ride would now end up feeling like hours.

Plopping back down on the cushioned seat, I tried to remember the fact that it was all in my head.

“It’s all in my head, it’s all in my head…” I kept repeating to myself. I struggled to understand the idea that it was my head reacting to the frequent stops of the vehicle and not the breakfast I had earlier hat morning, bouncing up and down in my belly.

The ride continued on. The driver continued to hit the breaks every five seconds, sending me into a convulsion each time.

The huge bus pulled its weight up the lane, uniformed in a line of sluggish cars. Someone behind me was slurping a coffee and the bitter smell slithered its way up my nostrils. I shuddered as I was reminded of what specific food items I had scoffed down that same morning in a rush to catch this very bus.

Trying to relax, I pushed deeper into my seat and counted down the minutes until the bus would make its final halt at the station.

“Gangsta Nancy Sinatra”

To be perfectly honest, my initial reaction to first seeing Lana Del Rey was that of pure hatred. When people asked me what I thought, I told them that her voice and music were overrated; who did she think she was, comparing herself to the likes of Nancy Sinatra?

But let me be realistic here. I didn’t hate her voice, or her music, which are both quite refreshing amidst the usual pop culture trash I’m used to hearing on a daily basis. My initial reaction was based on the fact that I thought she was absolutely stunning.

I’m not going to say that today I am a “Del Rey-fanatic”, but that after a few more listens of “Video Games”, she definitely started to grow on me. And I really sympathy for her after the tabloids blasted her first live SNL performance; a “train wreck” they called it.

Anyway, we’ll have to see where she goes from here. Her first album is scheduled for release at the end of the month.

Personal Favourites from the 2012 Golden Globes

While creams, yellows and lace dominated the red carpet at the Golden Globes this year, it was Salma Hayek’s panelled bustier and Evan Rachel Woods’ metallic and feathered frock, both by Gucci, that stood out the most to me. A few notable mentions go to Charlize Theron who looked simply angelic in a floating, pink Dior gown while Kidman didn’t disappoint in a gorgeous Versace piece.

Here are some of my favourites!

And who doesn’t love some drama? Here is a numbers that just didn’t make the cut in my mind.

Don’t get me wrong, I totally understand how this could be beautiful by most standards but I think that the colour of the dress just washes her out. Despite looking absolutely sophisticated and polished, Jolie also reminds me of an evil secretary/teacher/sailor combined into one.

View the entire red carpet roster here.

 

Lars von Trier’s ‘Melancholia’

Amazing. I had my expectations but Von Trier still managed to take my breath away. When people asked me, “Did you like it?”, I didn’t really know how to answer.

Yes, I liked it because Von Trier was able to pull some of the most deepest and darkest emotions right out me, not an easy feat. It’s very rare that I am able to sit in a theatre for close to two hours and not peek at my watch, so when it happens, it’s a definite sign of a good movie, in my opinion.

Melancholia made me uncomfortable, depressed, disgusted, hopeful, turned on, mesmerized, shocked and maybe even slightly happy. I look at it as quite an accomplishment for a movie director. A friend of mine who came to see the film with me wanted to leave the theatre during the first half hour and if you ask me, that’s a powerful reaction. Trier definitely achieved whatever it is that he set out to do.

The first sequence of the film really reminded me of Antichrist; the slow, panned-out shots, more reminiscent of a music video shoot rather than a movie. The all-star cast of Kiefer Sutherland, Kirsten Dunst, Charlotte Gainsbourg, John Hurt, Charlotte Rampling, Udo Kier and not to mention, Alexander Skarsgard, was just an added bonus.

Melancholia wasn’t an easy watch, but what more could you expect with Von Trier? After all, he conceived the idea during a very difficult time in his life. During his own ‘melancholia.’