I have been up for a while. Since 5.30 AM to be percise. Work stuff, dont ask.

Important thing is that I am soooooo tired. Went to bed around 11.30PM last night after reading BFF some of the story that I am writing for her. She had made some heavenly christmas biscuits, which got me into the christmas spirit. I am hooked now. Christmas all the way and its not even December yet.

How sad.

That is all for now.

Me x

Now playing:  Sid.Meier’s.Pirates-PC
Now Listening : Pink Panther’s Penthouse Party
Now watching:  House MD.

Hola estimados lectores, no se si se han preguntado si la musica que acualmente escuchamos es producto de nuevas ideas o es simplemente reciclaje (Salven al planeta reciclen!!!!!!)  Por que lo digo ? …..  Hace unos ayeres la campaña promocional de Volkswagen ( Como quiero a mi Jetta ! jejeje) promocionaba su nuevo Golf con este comercial :

Pero … resulto ser un homenaje del  grupo Mint Royale a Gene Kelly.  Mint Royale, es un grupo de música Big Beat de Manchester, Inglaterra.  El grupo originalmente fue formado por Neil Claxton y Chris Baker, pero este ultimo abandono la agrupacion y Claxton continuo bajo el nombre de Mint Royale.

La banda original comenzó en 1997, se especializaron en remixes y comenzaron a ser conocidos a partir de su mix de “Tequila”, de Terrorvisión.

Fueron apoyados por el guru del Dance británico Norman Cook, más conocido como Fatboy Slim que incluía piezas en su trabajo, esto creo una confusión, ya que los dos tenían estilos muy similares y algunas personas pensaron que Mint Royale era un seudónimo de Norman Cook.

El primer álbum “On the Ropes” salio a finales de 1999, a pesar de que no fue un éxito algunas de sus canciones alcanzaron cierta fama gracias a que se usaron algunas de las canciones en series de televisión, películas y algunos programas.

El segundo álbum “Dancehall Places” se lanza en el 2002 para después comenzar una gira de shows en directo por el Reino Unido. Volvieron de la gira en Abril del 2004 comenzando a escribir el tercer álbum, que después de ciertos problemas con el fundador de la banda original Chris Baker que retraso el trabajo, lograron terminarlo y publicarlo en enero del 2005 con el titulo “See You In The Morning “; en el 2005 crearon “Waiting in the Rain” un remix de la famosa canción Singin’ in the Rain o Cantando bajo la lluvia que se usó para el comercial del Volkswagen Golf GTI. Alcanzo el puesto #20 en las listas de Reino Unido y en  el 2007 sacan el álbum “Pop is…”.

Si tienen la oportunidad de consegir su discografia se los recomiendo ampliamente les dejo el video de la rola Blue Song que se desprende del album Pop is .

This song makes me happy. Perhaps because it is so peppy and fun. Perhaps because it reminds me of when G and I moved into our first apartment together.

Song Recommendations

If you like this song, I also suggest:

• Cut Copy
• Freezepop
• Hey Champ

I also suggest the music genre:

• Electropop

Click here for more info on Mint Royale – On The Ropes – “Don’t Falter”.

Click here for more info on Lauren Laverne.

(feat. Lauren Laverne)

The MP3 may be purchased here:

Mint Royale - On The Ropes

According to the proverb, if it rains on St. Swithun’s day (15th July), it will rain for 40 days. Great. Apparently, this proverb has some scientific background, in the form of the Jet Stream. If it lies more to the south, as it has done for the last three years, weather systems from the north are more prevalent.

Normally when an annoying song gets stuck in my head, listening to the track repeatedly for an hour or so resolves the situation. In a shameless bid to get the opportunity to play some cricket this month, I have been listening to some rain-related music. The effect may well turn out to be a drop in the ocean, but still, here are the best precipitation songs.

Why Does It Always Rain On Me? – Travis

Singin’ In The Rain (Mint Royale Remix) - Gene Kelly

Dry The Rain – The Beta Band

The Rain Song – Led Zeppelin

The Sun And The Rain - Madness

Rainbows & Pots Of Gold – Stereophonics

Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head – Manic Street Preachers

‘Bonus’ Cover Version: Umbrella – Biffy Clyro

Another oldie, but a newie at the same time: sentimentailty for the contemporary.

• Singin’ In The Rain (Special Edition) [DVD]
• Mint Royale – See You in the Morning

There hasn’t been any good music released worth reviewing nor have I seen any movies worth talking about, so here is some good music I heard recently :

1. From Rusholme With Love – Mint Royale.

Carnatic lead on veeNa fused with electronic beats played at *full* volume makes for an amazing background score while on a roadtrip. Keep your ‘neck dancing’ under control else it could make other drivers stare at you. I shall not reveal how I know this.

2. Pt. Nityanand Haldipur playing Brindavani Sarang (video).

I admit I have a soft corner with all the raagas that have a shuddha ni in the aroha and komal ni in the avaroha, but this piece is really soothing. It does not compare to the mehfil of a live concert, but this is the closest you can get.

On that note, do try trekking in the rain listening to Desh raag. Or take a classical singer along and make him/her sing.

3. Achutam Keshavam by Vikram Hazra.

I do not mix music with religion (or lack thereof), hence this song. This is basically a bhajan that is known in the Art of Living circles and makes for a really soothing listen. Vikram Hazra is an ex-Sony guy who has taken to Art of Living  instructing full time and also writes a blog. I haven’t hear such a fresh voice texture in quite some time now; his is an untrained voice which makes it even better. The lyrics are simple and nice too.

On that note, I quite like to be politically incorrect. So can someone please ask this kid (singing the same bhajan) to stop releasing tapes for now atleast. It is by far one of the most irritating pieces of music almost making me want to grab my eardum and ….. you get the idea. If you find it cute, you might have the Want-a-Child Syndrome and nothing else.

4. Ganesh and Kumaresh at Swar Utsav.

The music of new age violinist brothers Ganesh and Kumaresh is not for purists. Their USPs are the pace with which they kick off their pieces and the fusion of Carnatic and percussions.

5. From Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Marathi :

This is quite a clean and pure singing competition in case there are any takers left. Hindustani classical audiences should like the programme, language shouldn’t be a barrier.

a. Pushkar Lele with his rendition of Kumarji’s Lakshmi Vallabha.

I have heard him live in a concert and the way he immerses himself into his singing is worth enjoying. He is quite easily a misfit in the show, but gladly I got to listen to him.

b. Amruta Natu-Khadilkar with sAwar re.

The singing is far from great, but classical music lovers will enjoy the song. The first part of the mukhada is set in 5 beats, the second part in 4 beats, interlude in 5 beats and antara in 6 beats. Happy counting.

Among off-beat pieces, do check out a piece by Ustad Amjad Ali Khan and Zakir Hussain set in 9 1/2 beats; I couldn’t find it but it should be floating somewhere on the internet.

Feeling a bit nostalgic, here are a couple of tunes from 10 years ago that maybe you missed. And even if you didn’t miss them, it’s always nice to be reminded.

Mint Royale – Don’t Falter (mp3) from On the Ropes

According to their Wikipedia page, Mint Royale is not the jangly, female fronted band they led me to believe they are. In fact, they are a still-kicking big beat duo in the vein of The Propellerheads, Chemical Brothers, etc. The girl is a guest vocalist. Huh. You learn something new everyday.

This song, very specifically, reminds me of driving along the lake in the summertime.

Ben Lee – Cigarettes Will Kill You (mp3) from Breathing Tornados

There is a line in this song’s chorus that a girl once told me described exactly what she wanted in life: “…a TV embrace.”

I don’t know what Ben Lee meant when he penned that, but apparently she did. I hope she got it – or, if she hasn’t yet, I hope she does.

Shenanigans 01 – Part 5:

Format: mp3

Size: 6.6Mb

Time:7:12

Tracklisting:

Todd Terry – House Sermon
Fanny Pack – Nu Nu Yeah Yeah
Mighty Dub Katz – Magic Carpet Ride
Paul Oakenfold – Faster Kill Pussycat
Deep Dish – Sacramento
Mint Royale – Sexiest Man In Jamaica

Download “Shenanigans 01 – Part 5″ here

Are YOU ready for love? =)

Singin’ in the Rain’ is a song with lyrics by Arthur Freed and music by Nacio Herb Brown, published in 1929.
In 2005, the song was remixed by Mint Royale. It was released on 22nd August 2005 after being featured in an advert for the Volkswagen Golf .
In 2008, the track was featured on Britain’s Got Talent by winner George Sampson.
The “Short Radio Edit” of the track went to number one on the iTunes Top 100 in the UK, with other versions of the track appearing lower down.
It re-entered the UK Singles Chart at number 28 on June 1st 2008 and climbed to number 1 on June 8th 2008, knocking Rihanna’s “Take A Bow” down to the number 2 spot.

Lyrics:

I’m singing in the rain
Just singin’ in the rain
What a glorious feeling
I’m happy again
I’m laughing at clouds
So dark up above
The sun’s in my heart
And I’m ready for love
Let the stormy clouds chase
Everyone from the place
Come on with the rain
I’ve a smile on my face
I walk down the lane
With a happy refrain
Just singin’, singin’ in the rain
Dancing in the rain
I’m happy again
I’m singin’ and dancing in the rain
I’m dancing and singin’ in the rain

>Mint Royale – Singin in the Rain Song Information

Released August 22, 2005 (UK)
Recorded 2005
Genre Breakbeat, House, Synth-Pop
Length 2:04 (short radio edit), 3:26 (Pop Is… album version), 3:35 (See You in the Morning album version)
Label Faith & Hope, Direction Records
Writers Nacio Herb Brown, Arthur Freed
Producer Mint Royale

Once I’d graduated from dj-ing with vinyl and CDs to using a  PC, I started using the Ableton Live software package. I’d been using a different software package that basically simulated two decks – you could even varispeed and ‘nudge’ mp3 files to mix them. That was okay, but it was quite limiting and not very good. I heard about Ableton Live, downloaded the demo, then bought a version of Ableton Lite off eBay (which I eventually upgraded to the full thing – a much cheaper route than buying the full package).

No longer did I have to worry about short intros and outros and mismatching beats, because I could re-edit my own versions of songs I wanted. And once I started saving loops and samples of my favourite parts of records, I could start remixing them from the bottom up in a live situation – using a drum loop from one place, bassline from anoter, an acapella from a third track, and so on. I added a midi controller to operate the volume and EQ levels for up to sixteen tracks simultaneously, and that was all I needed – I didn’t even need headphones because I had a  graphic representation of the song in front of me and could see the breakdowns etc and even mark where elements of a song began and ended.

Finally, I realised that I could also mix anything in 4/4 time very easily. With Ableton you set a beat marker at the start of a bar and one at the end, and then just tell it how long to take to get from one marker to the next. So if I had a record at 120bpm, I could simply set the master tempo for 125bpm (for example) and Ableton took care of the time-stretching and key – no more speeded up records sounding like Mickey Mouse!

The Shenanigans series of mixes was born out of a desire to see how much I could push myself using Ableton – whether I could mix rock, dance, hip-hop, r&b and pop as seamlessly as I could mix dance records together. This mix, Shenanigans 01, is my very first attempt at doing that. I deliberately picked as varied a selection as I could, so in this mix you have Ocean Colour Scene and The Sugarhil gang mixed together as an opening pair, and artists that feature later include Korn and Girls Aloud, Linkin Park and Elvis Costello, Deep Dish and Elvis Presley, and so on.

I’ve split the mix into different parts to make it easier to download and find your favourite bits later. You should download all eight parts, then play them in order with no gaps between the tracks in order to get the full effect. If you put them on your iPod or press then to a CD, make sure you don’t have gaps between the tracks!

Shenanigans 01 – Part 1:

Format: mp3

Size: 7.8Mb

Time:8:21

Tracklisting:

Sugarhill Gang – Rapper’s Delight
Ocean Colour Scene – The Day We Caught The Train
Amerie – Man Up
Fun Lovin’ Criminals – Love Unlimited
M.I.A. – Galang
Survivor – Eye Of The Tiger
Usher – Yeah
AC/DC – Back In Black
Korn – Freak On A Leash
LL Cool J – Phenomenon
Embrace – Save Me
Linkin Park – In The End

Download “Shenanigans 01 – Part 1″ here

Shenanigans 01 – Part 2:

Format: mp3

Size: 6.2Mb

Time:6:41

Tracklisting:

Freestylers – B-Boy Stance
Blondie – Rapture
Daft Punk – Da Funk
Syntax – Bliss

Download “Shenanigans 01 – Part 2″ here

Shenanigans 01 – Part 3:

Format: mp3

Size: 9.5Mb

Time:10:18

Tracklisting:

Prince – Kiss
Fatboy Slim – Praise You
The Jackson 5 – I Want You Back
Elvis Presley – A Little Less Conversation
Barenaked Ladies – One Week
Michael Grey – Weekend
NERD – She Wants To Move
James – Laid
The Bucketheads – The Bomb!
Lionrock – Fire Up The Shoesaw
Britney Spears – Slave 4U
Thunderbugs – It’s About Time That You Were Mine

Download “Shenanigans 01 – Part 3″ here

Shenanigans 01 – Part 4:

Format: mp3

Size: 6.8Mb

Time:7:22

Tracklisting:

Holly Valance – Curious
Gorillaz – Dare
Felix Da Housecat – Silver Screen Shower Scene
Lenny Kravitz – Are You Gonna Go My Way?
Audio Bullys – We Don’t Care

Download “Shenanigans 01 – Part 4″ here

Shenanigans 01 – Part 5:

Format: mp3

Size: 6.6Mb

Time:7:12

Tracklisting:

Todd Terry – House Sermon
Fanny Pack – Nu Nu Yeah Yeah
Mighty Dub Katz – Magic Carpet Ride
Paul Oakenfold – Faster Kill Pussycat
Deep Dish – Sacramento
Mint Royale – Sexiest Man In Jamaica

Download “Shenanigans 01 – Part 5″ here

Shenanigans 01 – Part 6:

Format: mp3

Size: 6.7Mb

Time:7:16

Tracklisting:

The Clash – Rock The Kasbah
David Bowie – Rebel Rebel
Yer Man – Weird Therapy
Miss Kittin – Professional Distortion
Primal Scream – Rocks

Download “Shenanigans 01 – Part 6″ here

Shenanigans 01 – Part 7:

Format: mp3

Size: 10.6Mb

Time:7:37

Tracklisting:
Candi Staton – You Got The Love
Men Women & Children – Dance In My Blood
Kush – Bittersweet

Download “Shenanigans 01 – Part 7″ here

Shenanigans 01 – Part 8:

Format: mp3

Size: 8.9Mb

Time:9:38

Tracklisting:

Elvis Costello – Pump It Up
ESG – Dance
Nikka Costa – Funkier Than A Mosquito’s Tweeter
The Knack – My Sharona
Girls Aloud – No Good Advice

Download “Shenanigans 01 – Part 8″ here

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Remember The Mighty Boosh? Well here’s a video featuring them (mostly Noel but Julian is there, too)
The song is called Blue Song by Mint Royale, hope you like it!

Dos noticias rapidas. Muchachos no usen drogas, haganse ciclistas y asi se las regalaran. En este tour de france, el maximo ganador ha de haber sido la industria farmaceutica, pues el alto indice de dopaje se ha vuelto el mejor referente para hablar de la que fue uno de los eventos con mas reconocimiento en el mundo.

La otra noticia, mejor que la anterior, la diputada panista Pilar Ortega Martínez, fue descubierta en HARVARD (en un curso que se paga con nuestros impuestos) a la diputada le pidieron que hiciera una tarea hacerca de la reforma energetica y ella mando los requerimientos a su oficina en la camara de diputados para que se la hicieran. En Harvard se dieron cuenta de esto y el problema llego a tal que se habla de su expulsion. Les dejo su foto, busque una que se viera bonita, pero al parecer es tonta y fea

Bueno pasando a otras cosas que no tengan que ver con diputadas drogadictas y ciclistas tramposos, perdonen me equivoque, es al reves, con ciclistas drogadictos y diputadas tramposas, es que en estos tiempos ya no se sabe.

Ok Mint royale, Min royale es un disco que recuerda a lemon jelly, que si no lo conocen igual esta semana posteo algo de el. Bueno es un duo conformado por Neil Claxton y Chris Bake, los chicos ya llevan rato produciendo pues empezaron en 1997 y aunque solo llevan cuatro discos de estudio, tienen una gran cnatidad de participaciones y remixes en su haber, asi como sencillos impresos. Dentro de las mas rescatables esta el hecho de que han participado con Norman Cook aka Fat boy Slim y que han participado tambien en sountracks de peliculas como el caso de vanilla sky, la version de eu de la española abre los ojos.

En el 2008 su sencillo “singing in the rain” los llevo a ser los numero uno en UK, su ultimo disco impreso que es “POP is?” suena fresco, un poco estancado en los 90’s pero eso se debe a que mucho material es recopilado de sencillos anteriores. De todos modos los sonidos y la luz que esta musica produce esta ahi y nadie lo puede negar. Esperemos tener mas de Mint royale con este impulso que las coyunturas le han dado.

http://rapidshare.com/files/131385070/MintPop15.rar.html

Mint Royale’in Orjinal Klibi

Mint Royale Gene Kelly’nin klasiği Singin’ in The Rain parçasına modern bir yorum getirmiş.
Son dönemde dinlediğim en sıkı coverlardan biri olduğunu belirtmeliyim.  Mint Royale
Neil Claxton ve Chris Baker tarafından 1997′de kurulan Manchester dolaylarından house music grubu.

Blogda yer vermemin sebebi de yukardaki reklam. Reklam sektöründekiler bilirler VW reklamları arabalarından da iyidir.  Golf’ün yenilenmiş versiyonu içinse seçtikleri parça Mint Royale coverı Singin’ in the rain.
Reklamın sonundaki sloganla parça  çuk oturmuş. Hatta reklam bence parçanın klibinden de güzel

Mint Royale ‘in diğer çalışmaları merak ettiyseniz buradan dinleyebilirsiniz.

Much as I abhore the whoring of music in the name of pushing a commercial product I am partial to this little 30 second ditty used in the name of a certain sweet fruity drink. The Music is by Chris Baker, originally one half of Mint Royale whose ’singing in the rain’ remix was used a few years ago in a VW advert and which topped the British charts a short while ago thanks to its reinterpretation by the winning ‘Britain’s got talent‘ contestant (does trying to copy an advert count as a talent now?).

Audio only:

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• TV winner’s dance mix tops chart

Comhchairdeachas to George Sampson who won Britain’s got talent!

And what a talent.. Check out his performance below, to Mint Royale’s “Singing in the Rain”

Britain’s Got Talent Semi-final

Táim ag iarraidh dul ag damhsa anois!

Mint Royale’s Video -> Click Me