From the Basement

Hey there cats and kittens!

What’s great about working at BU Central is that you can sit in the booth and watch as many as (wait lemme count) FIVE screens simultaneously. In front of me some über-cutesy alternative chick is prancing around in a sun dress on mtvU; Luigi, Donkey Kong and Snake are duking it out on the big screen in an intense Super Smash Bros match and behind me Yoshi, Princess Peach and Link are doing the same. But the screen that has my utmost attention is the lil lap top in front of me. There’s a great website that I happened upon called none other than From the Basement (WOAH BU CENTRAL IS IN A BASEMENT!!!). This podcast turned television show turned website hosts live performances by stellar bands, many of which are my faves, including The White Stripes, Eels, Thom Yorke, My Morning Jacket, Architecture in Helsinki and MANY MANY MORE!! What’s interesting about this show is that there’s no host! Just the band. Your eyes and ears, and the band.

Here are my faves…

(I’m posting the videos via youtube but you guys should visit the actual website! Linked above)

Beck- Motorcade

The White Stripes- Ugly As I Seem

Eels- Millicent Don’t Blame Yourself

Radiohead- 15 Step

MtvU ain’t got shit on this.

I hope all of you can have a mind blowing weekend, even if you do it from a basement!

LOVE ABBY!

bonus track… this is a GREAT SONG that I found delightedly on my iPod today! FIVE STARS! YEAH!

Yeti- Midnight Flight

We Are the World

HI FRIENDS!

Welcome to the latest installment of WORLD MUSIC BLOG FUN TIMES!!!

Since coming to Boston University I have met so many amazing people from all over the world. My group of friends alone is a microcosm of Boston and BU and it represents the incredible diversity of both. Recently I have been really appreciating the awesome fact that these individuals can have such different origins yet can come together and connect at such an intrinsic level. I love all my friends because we are so compatible. And I love all my friends because they are all infinitely enriching.. and each in completely their own ways.

Basically what I’m trying to say is that I find it so fascinating that a group of people can come from such contrasting beginnings but ultimately have the same mind-set. How? Convergent psycho-evolution? Does that even exist? Maybe I should talk to one of my Philosophy/ Anthropology professors about it.. but anyways, this weeks blog is a shout out to all my beautiful friends from all over the world. Here are some songs from their countries of origin

Yay for friends! and music! and places!

 

GERMANY

Better Tomorrow- Last Goodbye

CUBA

Buena Vista Social Club- Chan Chan

This video is taken from an awesome movie about the music and culture of Cuba. Watch it. I swear you will fall in love with the adorable old men who smoke fatties and live for their music.

ISRAEL

I think I’ve posted some Asaf Avidan before but HERE IT AGAIN! This band is just beautiful.

Asaf Avidan- Her Lies

FRANCE

Mmmmm

Break Bot- I’m Yours

That’s all for now kids!

 

GET GROOOOOVY GUYS!!

Much love, Abby!

 

WORLD MUSIC NIGHT! DECEMBER 2ND! 8:00P.M.! TELLLLL YOOUUUURR FRIIEEENDSS!!!

More Foreign Tunes!

Greetings Earthlings!

So this week I’m putting a lil’ spin on the whole foreign music idea. This week I am going to be posting songs related to OUTER SPACE and ALIENS!! ¿POR QUÉ?, you may ask. Well, because Aliens are by far the coolest type of foreigners I can think of! Plus, I’ve been on a real space kick lately writing Spanish essays about extraterrestres or ALIENS (not to be confused with extranjeros (foreigners)… which I actually did in my essay. heh), covering the walls in my apartment with tinfoil, and doodling big headed one-eyed creatures, space ships and celestial bodies all over my notebooks in class.

SO, without further ado, I present to you, ALIEN THEMED SONGS! some of which are from foreign countries!

 

Outkast- E.T.

Outta this wooooorld! Are you alien?

 

Intergalactic-Beastie Boys

THROOOOWBAAAACK! Aliens Rule! Robots Rule! The Beastie Boys Rule! YEAH!

 

Radiohead- Subterranean Homesick Alien

“Up above
Aliens hover
Making home movies
For the folks back home

Of all these weird creatures
Who lock up their spirits
Drill holes in themselves
And live for their secrets

They’re all uptight.”

 

The Rezillos- Flying Saucer Attack!

and Destination Venus

<3 new-wave punk.

 

Hope your weekend is OUT OF THIS WORLD!

I love you all.

Abby

 

WORLD MUSIC NIGHT AT BU CENTRAL. THURSDAY, DECEMBER 2ND. 8:00PM. TELL YOUR FRIENDS.

World Music Halloween Edition

It’s finally HALLOWEEN!!!

And I bet you didn’t know that it originated in Ireland!! FOR REALZ. According to my good friend Wikipedia, the original Celtic holiday, Samhain, was a celebration of the end of the “lighter half” of the year and the beginning of the “darker half.” So essentially we are celebrating ALL THINGS SINISTER \m/

Listen to/ watch these demonic songs from around the world to get you in the mood for mischief…

AMERICA

Michael Jackson- Thriller

Marilyn Manson- This is Halloween

GERMANY

This shit is scary.

Rammstein- Ich Tu Dir Weh

JAPAN

OHMYGOD. The United States has nothing on Japan.

Dir en Gray- Obscure

KOREA

Eve- Agape

INDIA

hahahahahaha TERRIFYING.

Bollywood Michael Jackson – ‘Golimaar’

HAIL SATAN!

<3 Abby

World Music

Bonjour mes amis!

“Music is the universal language of mankind” -Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Coming up on Thursday, December 2nd BU Central will be hosting it’s second ever World Music Night! World Music Night is all about learning about and making connections with other cultures through music since as we all know, music is something that breaches cultural boundaries and brings people together. So, until the big event on December 2nd all my posts will highlight awesome music from around the world, some popular favorites as well as some obscure oddities. I hope all of you are excited to experience something a little different and I hope all of you join us on December 2nd to see all the awesome talent from all over the world here at BU!

FRANCE

Yelle- A Cause Des Garçons

Who knows what the hell is going on in this music video but this song sure is fun to dance to! Also, if you don’t have Yelle in your music library, I HIGHLY suggest spending that iTunes gift card on if not all, at least a good portion of their discography.

nnel

 

FRANCE/SPAIN

Manu Chao- Me gustas tu

Me gusta Manu Chao, por cierto! They’re just another one of crazy feel good performers that just take me back to the summer. This one goes out to my bueno amigo David who came to the U.S. over the summer from México this summer simply to chill and experience Boston at its best. Manu Chao also exemplifies the world music culture– born in Paris but of Spanish origin, he sings in Spanish, English, French, Galician, Arabic, and Portuguese!! HOT DAMN.

 

MALI

Amadou et Mariam- Je pense a toi

I think I found Amadou et Mariam one random day stumbling across the internet. Anyways, they’re awesome. They blend traditional Mali sound with rock guitars and other instruments from all over the world– Egypt, Syria, India and more– to create a unique Afro-blues sounds different than anything we have here in the states. Enjoy!

 

Well that’s all for now folks! I hope you look forward to next weeks World Music blog!

 

PEACE!

Abby

Biffles

Cheerio!

The past week, which has been completely dominated by hours of isolation and studying in Mugar, sustained only by  the artificial type of focus provided by a steady caffeine intake, has made me realize how much I really need my friends to stay sane, centered and just plain happy. So, for today’s post I am going to give a big shout out to my friends my posting songs to the BUC blog that either they’ve posted to their facebook/shared with another friend, that we have enjoyed together on our wild adventures together or that simply epitomize our fabulous connection. Here’s to you, you crazy, beautiful people.

Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds- The Beatles

Last Saturday I went home to the hills of Western MA where the stars shine in the night sky brighter than Boston will ever know. At some point in the night, between dancing like maniacs to MGMT and setting off the fire alarm with a fog machine, we found ourselves paying tribute to John Lennon (who’s 70th Birthday was on Saturday) by laying on our backs staring into the universe at Lucy in the Sky with diamonds.

These next two songs were posted in the past week by my good friend from SPFLD 413 (that’s Springfield, MA for all you outta towners). He’s at school in Providence, RI DJing for his schools radio station. What’s great about having friends who are passionate about music is that they find awesome new music and I reap the benefits! YAY! So here is to you Mr. Derek Knox!

Since I Left You- The Avalanches

Marathon- Tennis (This chicks voice is AMAZING AND HYPNOTIC)

SO LAST YEAR I WAS A FRESHMEN AND NEEDED A FRIEND. And I got the best ever. He’s cute, he’s funny, he’s smart, he’s a crazy fool and, most importantly he has friggin’ great taste in music! He has introduced me to some great music and likewise I’ve shared my favorites with him. Here are two songs, one from an artist he showed me who I loved the first time I heard them and the other a lil’ band who I have had an infatuation with for god knows how long that I have passed along to him.

Weak- Asaf Avidan and the Mojos

We’re Going to be Friends- The White Stripes

Thanks for reading friends! Hope you guys have an amazing weekend and don’t forget to tell your friends how much you love them!

Peace.

Abby

YAY COLUMBUS!!

Hi friends!

LOOONNG WEEEEEEKEND!!!  WOOOOO!!!! PARTAAY!!! But srsly u guyz, who isn’t excited to celebrate the awesome life and accomplishments of none other than Christopher Columbus? I know I can’t wait to go home, cut, color and paste together little booklets of the sequence of events of the discovery of America, make stick models of the Nina, the Pinta and the Santa Maria, and, my favorite Columbus Day activity, barge into other people’s homes and declare that I now live there! Whaddya say? Let’s make this the BEST Columbus Day Weekend EVA!!

First things first. WE NEED A PLAY LIST!

The first song on our play list is from Bob Dylan. This is a great song because we can hear Bobbie D. in a completely candid moment cracking up about what is probably some REALLY funny Christopher Columbus joke. In the song he accounts the zany surreal happenings of his discovery of America. It’s fun. It’s cooky. It has a Christopher Columbus reference! And is therefore perfect for our Columbus Day Weekend play list!

Bob Dylan’s 115th Dream

NEXT. Ok so that’s the only song that I could find that had a Columbus reference in the lyrics that I actually liked. BUT I think Christopher Columbus really could have related to this song since he landed on the Bahamas and the Bahamas are ISLANDS.

Postcards from Tiny Islands-The Walkmen

TRES. (Columbus was from Spain which means he spoke Spanish!) Here is a great song by Devendra Banhart in Español with SANTA MARIA in the song title. PERFECTISIMO!

santa maria de la feira- Devendra Banhart

OK I lied. I found another song with Christopher Columbus lyrics that I like. Here it is via YouTube. I think he’s talking about how much of a corrupt asshole Christopher Columbus was for stealing land from people and stripping them of their natural rights and dignity. In this case I guess we can celebrate the fact that he’s dead!! YAY!

Christopher Columbus- Burning Spears

Whether or not you love or hate Christopher Columbus, I hope you have a rad weekend with lots of friends and fun!

PAZ!

Abby

Mo’ Monáe!

Hey cats and kittens!

If you’ve been in BU Central at all this semester you’ve probably seen the groovy music video for Janelle Monáe’s single Tightrope ft. Big Boi where she and her fellow androids pull off some AMAZING moves reminiscent of MJ.

If you haven’t seen it. SEE IT NOW.

On September 16th I saw Janelle Monáe perform with Of Montreal at the House of Blues and I literally could not stop dancing throughout her entire performance. And not only can she dance like a maniac she is an incredible vocalist, has her own distinct style and not to mention is gorgeous. BASICALLY I WANT TO BE HER.

Here are a couple of my favorite songs off of her latest album The ArchAndroid.

Dance or Die (feat. Saul Williams)

Cold War