Coldplay's new song

My friend wrote me an email early this morning telling me to listen to Coldplay's new song, she knew I was a fan so I checked their website where they offered a free download of the song. Sadly I couldn't download the song, the link they sent me didn't work for me. I've heard some people also had a similar problem so I guess some were lucky, others weren't.

So I went to Coldplay's page on myspace and was finally able to hear it. I must say I was pretty impressed with their new song ''Violet Hill'', the first thing that came to mind upon hearing the first few notes was ''David Gilmore'', ''very Pink-Floy-ish'' but not the psychedelic Pinkf Floyd phase, not their '' The Wall'' phase either, rather it tends to sound more like the last few Floyd's albums. It's not too Pink-Floy-ish though, just slightly inspired by them. I haven't read anything mentionning they were listening to Pink Floyd while recording the album, I just think it's me that sees or hear the similarities. To me that's a great thing. I was getting tired of them sounding a bit too much like U2, a different sound could only be refreshing.

Now let's just hope the new album is as good as Parachute was.

Game 3....was there actually a game?

I'm not sure if I was sleeping or awake but what I do know is I'm gonna have nightmares when I do go to sleep. Seriously, my Habs and the Flyers are playing like it's not the series. Price actually decided it was time to take a long nap, it lasted 5 periods so hopefully he's gonna be in top shape when he does wake up. But my Habs were all on cruise control, never changing speed until they finally realized they were not driving a car but were on skates...they then started to skate, something they're paid millions to do. Oh...and when you see a net, you actually have to put the puck in it.

So far, the Bruins/Habs series was more intense, both team worked hard and that was fun to watch. Intensity was high in all 7 games. Intensity lacks this time around.

Sleepy game...

So the 1st game between the Flyers and Habs wasn't at all what I expected it to be. First of all, what happened to the crowd? They weren't loud at all last night, usually you can't even hear the singer sing the national anthems! I wonder if it has to do with the riot they had after the Habs won the last game of the series between them and the Bruins. Maybe it's because before the game they asked people to respect the national anthems? Maybe it's just because it was that way and there was no reason for that other than it was that way.

In any case the match wasn't that good either. I think that's to be expected in a way, both teams were like boxers examining each other's move, it is after all a new opponent. Both team went through a 7 game marathon and were on a high, this being the start of another series surely means the game will get better as the series moves along.
My Habs didn't play that good, the Flyers had a good chance of winning but didn't. They also didn't play that well. The game was flat.

Game 2 this Saturday.

Flyers/Habs

So it's now official, my Habs will play vs roark's Flyers.

1st game: Thursday. I expect the crowd to be extremely loud and boo Brière every time he touches the puck, if they booed Chara then Brière should bring his earplugs, he's gonna need it.

Price better be ready to push the guys that are gonna try and deconcentrate him in front of the net.

I must say this about the Flyers/Caps game, I'm beside myself about the officiating in the game last night (although they pretty much sucked in the Habs/Bruins games as well) so hopefully it's the way the team plays that will decide who wins and not the bad calls from the people officiating the games.

On that second goal, there should have been a penalty called not a goal. On the third period the officials decided not to call any penalties except that last one (good call on that penalty) even tough a few penalties should have been called but weren't. I think the Caps got screwed not once but twice last night. The officials did an awful job and everyone watching the game saw it.

But that's hockey. Now just bring on the Flyers.

The Mary Onettes

There's this Swedish band I discovered a few months ago and I'm so pleased to finally own their self titled cd. From the moment the music starts it's magical, the band makes us travel back in time and let's us revisit the sound of the '80s and early '9os. It's alt-pop-rock-shoegazing so there's always a great atmosphere on each song. Perhaps the only flaw is the fact that the influences are way too obvious at times but that's a minor flaw, there's a wonderful flow to the songs and the vocals are great. There's a bit of Joy Division in there, Echo and the Bunnymen even some Jesus and Mary Chain influence in there.

Pleasure Songs, Still, Laughter and Explosions are my favourite songs on the album. I could listen to them repeatedly and not get bored with them.

It's a perfect record for those days when you feel like going back in time, when all you want is simple pleasure for your ears and nothing else.


The Mary Onettes

What else but hockey!

So my Habs won, they now have to wait to see who their opponents are gonna be for the 2nd round of the playoffs. It will either be the Flyers (if they defeat the Caps) or the Rangers (if the Caps defeat the Flyers). I'm rooting for the Flyers, not because I'm a fan but it would be a fantastic series. The Rangers are a great team even though I never liked them all that much, they have great veteran players and always put up a good fight, they could go very far in the playoffs.

So roark, I'm rooting for your team. I do think an Habs/Flyers game would be awesome to watch, better than an Habs/Rangers that's for sure. Then again maybe it's just wishful thinking because I know the Rangers would probably give my Habs a hard time.

I love the Caps because of Ovechkin, because of Huet, because the way they play hockey is similar to the way my Habs play hockey. But I'm still rooting for the Flyers...just because...just because.....

So tonight I'll be watching the game from start to finish.

It's a goooooaaaal

Some people are feverish and it has absolutely nothing to do with the flu, it's hockey fever in Québec! What a great game I just watched on tv. Awesome, electrifying. Both the crowd and the players were amazing, what an incredible atmosphere. The Boston Bruins gave their best, they played inspired hockey throughout the series but talent isn't one of their best asset.

Price is a hell of a goaler considering he's just 20 years old, he made amazing saves tonight. In the 1st period he kept the Habs in the game, he made 11 saves in that period. The team then started to play their game, skated better, used their speed and started to score goals.

So now that we're done with the Bruins, I'm looking forward to the second round.

As a true fan...Go Habs Go!!!!


p.s roark, Flyers/Caps game # 7 should be very interesting.

Delirious stuff from MAN MAN

I have no idea how come I've never heard of this awesome fucked up band before but anyway I discovered them yesterday when I took a little detour to yet another record store.

They're from Philadelphia (maybe roark knows about them!!!), they're truly original, truly amazing. They're called MAN MAN. Their album Rabbit Habits is a blend of Tom Waits, Nick Cave, the craziness of Frank Zappa and sometimes there's even a bit of Beirut in there. It's a blend of all those artists but much more than that it sounds like nothing else, it's brilliantly done, it's dark yet the music is so full of life. A little bit of insanity in music is a good thing, it's what creativity is all about. Moving away from the boundaries of normality is what this album does from start to finish.


MAN MAN

Tattoos!

I wanted to write about tattoos....I am writing about tattoos but I don't feel like eborating now so there you go, there'll be a post about tattoos soon but not now.

Birds, winter, spring and whaterver

It's mid April, there's still snow on the ground. Usually by now the grass starts to show, the birds that flew away for the cold season are getting back and have started to look for a partner. Some birds have already come back but it's still cold so there isn't a lot for them to eat, the branches still look pretty dead to me but when you see the birds making a return you just have to know they can't be wrong, if they're here it's because winter's leaving. Right?

The bad Bruins took their revenge

So my Habs lost in OT, they didn't play like a team that wanted to win. The Bruins played a more physical game than they did the two previous games and my Habs weren't using their speed as much. Some players don't seem to know the playoffs are NOW not later! I remember hearing Jean Perron (he coached the Habs in the '80s) repeating year after year that he doesn't believe any NHL team is gonna win the Stanley Cup with an european captain. That wasn't mean to be taken as a racist remark on his part, he adores skilled european players but he said as much as they love hockey there's a better chance for them to battle harder for the world cup since they represent their native country while the Stanley Cup represents a lot for North American players. Now I'm hoping Kovalev's gonna prove him wrong, that one doesn't have to be an american or a canadian to understand the meaning of what it is to win the Stanley cup. That working for it means a few more weeks of skating, a few more weeks without going back home. It means the millions of dollars they give you is not only for the regular season but so you could take your team to a higher level and give the fans what they want. Afterall the Bell Center was filled with fans all season long, every night the 21 000 people or so that screamed for the team, paying expensive tickets so they could encourage the Habs so yes the fans deserve to see their team make at least another round.

Mariah....not you again!

Oh the horror, the terror that happened on Wednesday April the 9th.
As always I programmed CSI NY knowing I'd be watching it a few days later when I had the time to do so. Comes Saturday morning, it's a slow boring morning and it happens to be a rainy day so that's just the perfect morning to watch my CSI NY ep. I click on the return button so the show can start at the beginning, wait there must be a mistake! It's not CSI NY that I see on tv, it's @#%?&*? American Idol and worst of all Mariah Carey's on it!!!!!!!!! I'll have to send a note to Motorola since the recorder didn't break when Mariah Carey was on, I thought either the tv or dvd recorder was gonna die on me.
The horror lead to disappointment, because that damn American Idol show was on and lasted longer than it should and I only programmed 1 hour of show well the inevitable happened, I didn't get to see the last 15 minutes of my show. I blame it all on that evil Mariah Carey and that show that sucks. I was hoping to see some gore on CSI NY but I only got to see a moment of tv horror when she made her appearance, that's even scarier than watching any gore show or movie.

CH...just hockey!

Hockey is like a cult for some people I guess. For some it's a national sport, it's more important than politics. I mean if our federal government was to declare that an election was to take place he wouldn't get a lot of votes right now, at least not from Québecers. The Habs are in the playoffs and people are proud of the team, people are going insane. There's a wave of support toward the team , lots of pride , a need to celebrate, a desire to stand by the team no matter what happens. For hockey fans that live in this province it's a well known thing that hockey is extremely important, the playoffs are important.

The Habs will celebrate their 100th year of existence in 2009, new fans see the old black and white video from back then and they don't relate to that anymore, they know Maurice Richard was a great player but they don't know what he meant to french canadians, that past is just a link to the future and the future is now. What they relate to are the new young players like the Kostitsyns brothers, Chris Higgins,Tomas Plecanec, Carey Price. Alexei Kovalev is such an artist on the ice, he's strong, he's a creative player and fans of the team were in desperate need to have an ''hero'' like him, something we haven't had in years.

With fans like us comes some funny situations though. Before the Bell Center became the Habs' home the old Forum was their kingdom, that place had so much history and when they decided to move to Habs into the new arena people said they left ghosts at the old Forum. Even Harry Sinden, former general manager of the Bruins spoke about those ''ghostly'' visions he had in the '70s and '80s. Too funny, way too nuts but it's now part of the legend. And this week it got even weirder, a mover said ''he'd move the Forums ghosts to the Bell Center. The move will require a truck and a 53-feet (!!!) trailer.'' That wasn't on April's Fools Day either. Dare I say he took it way too far! It's stupid, it's crazy but hey hockey fever is here and some people should take their pills.

Cheap walking shoes

I'm pissed. It was getting so nice outside and I truly felt the need to go outside for long walks in the fresh air, enjoying the sun while listening to some good music on my mp3 player but I needed some good walking shoes so I went out and bought a pair, I liked how my feet felt in them so I bought them but I should have known they wouldn't please me forever, in fact they pleased me three days. That's right, 3 shitty days. Talk about comfortable cheap shoes. I looked at the soles of my shoes noticing after walking a few miles with them for 3 days only that it seemed as if they're old shoes already, they seem to have a lived an awful life but no they're like a newborn baby.

So I was a bit angry for the fact that I paid for those bad shoes, I went to buy another paid that doesn't seem cheap this time around. There's no way a pair of shoes is gonna ruin my daily walk, no bloody way. But I better not have to pay for a third pair within a week! Because then it's my wallet that's gonna be empty.

Small record store and Dead Kennedys

Yesterday I felt like shopping and being somewhat of a creature of habit I ended up where I always end up: at the record store. The moment I set foot in the place I started feeling pretty darn good, maybe being so close to wrapped LPs made me feel that way, I do feel like a kid in a candy store when I go to that place. It's no HMV, it's not your ordinary records store, it's independant so the owner tries to put some gems on the shelves and as far as I'm concerned that place is like a Heaven to me. I always end up finding stuff I would never find elsewhere.
There were so many interesting records there but I had to be a good girl and decide to buy just a few LPs. How cruel, I found every record Dead Kennedys ever made expect their first album ''Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables'' which contains the classic punk song '' Holiday In Cambodia''. I wanted that album badly, it's pure political punk music that's very sarcastic, very witty.

The band was so controversial at the time, their lead singer Jello Biafra was flamboyant and his lyrics were as sharp as a knife. Dead Kennedys was more than just a bunch of guys talking about political issues, more than just a regular punk band. Unlike many punk rockers of the time, they were more skilled musically than others were.

Listening to those songs is fun, I just like the raw energy, the weird voice that only makes the songs sound even more punk, more anarchic. The lyrics haven't lost their wit, years after they came out they still sound very actual. As a band they made great punk music, as a solo artist Biafra doesn't even come close to what Dead Kennedys did as a whole. But hey, there's a time to rock and a time to roll. After that it's time to move on.

Dead Kennedys

Opening round of the playoffs

Whether my Habs hold up to their number 1 spot or end up number 2 in the conference the Montréal Canadians will play vs the Boston Bruins in the opening round of the playoffs. My Habs swept the Bruins in their eight-game season series but when the playoffs starts it's an all new season, anything can happen. The fact that we beat the Bruins 8 times doesn't count all that much now, sure it can boost their confidence a bit but it can also be a source of motivation for the Bruins.

I'm kinda relieved we don't play vs the Rangers, they're not the greatest team but for some reason my Habs usually don't play well against them (minus the comeback of the century that we saw a few weeks ago). The Devils, although they have Brodeur, are painfully boring to watch, dare I say they make me very soporific. I'm glad it's not any of those teams but a Capitals or Sens series would have been so damn good to watch. Well maybe if we get to the 2nd round.

Let's talk about last night's game for a sec. The Leafs didn't play like jerks last night, I thought they'd play nasty but no, they played good hockey for a team that wasn't gonna be in the playoffs.
We also got to see Gregory Stewart, a left winger that made a really good first impression. The guy had a chance everytime he was on the ice. I'm sure coach Carbonneau liked what he saw and Stewart's gonna have the chance to play with the Habs when the right time comes along.

And Higgins is finally playing great hockey, is it just a coincidence that it's happening when the playoffs are about to start? Is it because he's been playing as a center instead of being a winger? Is it because Saku isn't there and Higgins has simply decided that his game could (and should) be taken to a new level?

I'm looking forward to Thursday's excitement, we have ice advantage so the Bell Center is gonna be VERY NOISY. Some of the younger players that never experienced the crowd's enthusiasm will be totally amazed by what they're about to live.

This afternoon I'm gonna watch the Penguins/Flyers game (roark, you're gonna watch it too, right?), should be a good one.

Hockey Playoffs

I'm really excited about my Habs, they're # 1 in their division and have a chance of being champions of the North east division, the other team aiming for that spot is the Pittsburg Penguins. The only thing that's sure is that my Habs are gonna be in the playoffs fighting to bring home the Stanley Cup, a cup they won 14 times already.
Who are we gonna play against? For now that's the big question since anything is possible, it could be the Washington Capitals , the Ottawa Senators (the team most of us thought would be the champions). I must confess that I would love to play vs the Capitals because it would simply be so entertaining for the fans to see Ovechkin and Huet, a goalie that I truly admire and that used to be Montréal's goalie a few weeks ago. My team consists of so many young players that I honestly don't see them win the Cup this time around (but hey, every expert said the Habs would be 14th in the standings so anything's possible) but getting that experience is definitely a good thing.
The CH is the only team amongst the 30 team in the NHL that has 7 players with over 50 points. My team also has the most goals throughout the league. The Habs don't have any goons on their team instead they rely on their speed. Also, we don't have any Ovechkin but what the team has is great chemistry and they play as a team unlike some other team that tends to have a few stars on the ice but lack group effort.

Just the fact that they've made it this far when no one saw them being a contender, now that's what sport is all about. Go Habs Go!!

Pas Chic Chic

Melodramatic music definitely turns me on, this canadian band (from Montréal, Qc) called ''Pas Chic Chic'' captures that melodramatic essence perfectly. Their sound reminds me of The Dears in their earlier days perhaps because of the structure of the songs, how orchestral it is at times. It's melodramatic, dreamy and there's a new wave element to it as well. Listening to it sends my soul on a journey, my mind starts travelling and leads me to unknown destinations that are so full of life, where psychedelia meets normality, where the music transforms the surroundings around me, where each notes seems to bring me a step closer to being hypnotized by the sometime chaotic experience of listening to Pas Chic Chic.

A great album that's not meant to be enjoyed by everyone.

Pas Chic Chic