31 ago 2014

'The Division Bell', album intero



Album: The Division Bell [1994]

Tracks
01Cluster One
02What Do You Want From Me
03Poles Apart
04Marooned
05A Great Day For Freedom
06Wearing The Inside Out
07Take It Back
08Coming Back To Life
09Keep Talking
10Lost For Words
11High Hopes



Cluster One
(Instrumental)

 What Do You Want From Me


As you look around this room tonight
Settle in your seat and dim the lights
Do you want my blood, do you want my tears
What do you want
What do you want from me
Should I sing until I can't sing any more
Play these strings until my fingers are raw
You're so hard to please
What do you want from me

Do you think that I know something you don't know
What do you want from me
If I don't promise you the answers would you go
What do you want from me
Should I stand out in the rain
Do you want me to make a daisy chain for you
I'm not the one you need
What do you want from me

You can have anything you want
You can drift, you can dream, even walk on water
Anything you want

You can own everything you see
Sell your soul for complete control
Is that really what you need

You can lose yourself this night
See inside there is nothing to hide
Turn and face the light

What do you want from me

Poles Apart
Did you know . . . it was all going to go so wrong for you
And did you see it was all going to be so right for me
Why did we tell you then
You were always the golden boy then
And that you'd never lose that light in your eyes

Hey you . . . did you ever realise what you'd become
And did you see that it wasn't only me you were running from
Did you know all the time but it never bothered you anyway
Leading the blind while I stared out the steel in your eyes

The rain fell slow, down on all the roofs of uncertainty
I thought of you and the years and all the sadness fell away from me
And did you know . . .

I never thought that you'd lose that light in your eyes

Marooned
(Instrumental)

A Great Day For Freedom
On the day the wall came down
They threw the locks onto the ground
And with glasses high we raised a cry for freedom had arrived

On the day the wall cane down
The Ship of Fools had finally run aground
Promises lit up the night like paper doves in flight

I dreamed you had left my side
No warmth, not even pride remained
And even though you needed me
It was clear that I could not do a thing for you

Now life devalues day by day
As friends and neighbours turn away
And there's a change that, even with regret, cannot be undone

Now frontiers shift like desert sands
While nations wash their bloodied hands
Of loyalty, of history, in shades of gray

I woke to the sound of drums
The music played, the morning sun streamed in
I turned and I looked at you
And all but the bitted residue slipped away . . . slipped away

Wearing The Inside Out
From morning to night I stayed out of sight
Didn't recognise I'd become
No more than alive I'd barely survive
In a word . . . overrun

Won't hear a sound He's curled into the corner
From my mouth But still the screen is flickering
I've spent too long With and endless stream of garbage to
On the inside out ... curse the place
My skin is cold In a sea of random images
To the human touch The self-destructing animal
This bleeding heart's Waiting for the waves to break
Not beating much

I murmured a vow of silence and now
I don't even hear when I think aloud
Extinguished by light I turn on the night
Wear its darkness with an empty smile

I'm creeping back to life
My nervous system all away
I'm wearing the inside out

Look at him now
He's paler somehow
But he's coming round
He's starting to choke
It's been so long since he spoke
Well he can have the words right from my mouth

And with these words I can see
Clear through the clouds that covered me
Just give it time then speak my name
Now we can hear ourselves again

I'm holding out He's standing on the threshold
For the day Caught in fiery anger
When all the clouds And hurled into the furnace he'll
Have blown away . . . curse the place
I'm with you now He's torn in all directions
Can speak your name And still the screen is flickering
Now we can hear Waiting for the flames to break
Ourselves again

Take It Back
Her love rains down on me easy as the breeze
I listen to her breathing it sounds like the waves on the sea
I was thinking all about her, burning with rage and desire
We were spinning into darkness; the earth was on fire

She could take it back, she might take it back some day

So I spy on her, I lie to her, I make promises I cannot keep
Then I hear her laughter rising, rising from the deep
And I make her prove her love to me, I take all that I can take
And I push her to the limit to see if she will break

She might take it back, she could take it back some day

Now I have seen the warnings, screaming from all sides
It's easy to ignore them and G-d knows I've tried
All of this temptation, it turned my faith to lies
Until I couldn't see the danger or hear the rising tide

She can take it back, she will take it back some day

She can take it back, she will take it back some day

She will take it back, she will take it back some day

Coming Back To Life
Where were you when I was burned and broken
While the days slipped by from my window watching
Where were you when I was hurt and I was helpless
Because the things you say and the things you do surround me
While you were hanging yourself on someone else's words
Dying to believe in what you heard
I was staring straight into the shining sun

Lost in thought and lost in time
While the seeds of life and the seeds of change were planted
Outside the rain fell dark and slow
While I pondered on this dangerous but irresistible pastime
I took a heavenly ride through our silence
I knew the moment had arrived
For killing the past and coming back to life

I took a heavenly ride through our silence
I knew the waiting had begun
And headed straight . . . into the shining sun

Keep Talking
"For millions of years mankind lived just like the animals
Then something happened which unleashed the power of our imagination
We learned to talk"

There's a silence surrounding me
I can't seem to think straight
I'll sit in the corner
No one can bother me
I think I should speak now Why won't you talk to me
I can't seem to speak now You never talk to me
My words won't come out right What are you thinking
I feel like I'm drowning What are you feeling
I'm feeling weak now Why won't you talk to me
But I can't show my weakness You never talk to me
I sometimes wonder What are you thinking
Where do we go from here What are you feeling

"It doesn't have to be like this
All we need to do is make sure we keep talking"

Why won't you talk to me I feel like I'm drowning
You never talk to me You know I can't breathe now
What are you thinking We're going nowhere
What are you feeling We're going nowhere
Why won't you talk to me
You never talk to me
What are you thinking
Where do we go from here

"It doesn't have to be like this
All we need to do is make sure we keep talking"

Lost For Words
I was spending my time in the doldrums
I was caught in a cauldron of hate
I felt persecuted and paralysed
I thought that everything else would just wait

While you are wasting your time on your enemies
Engulfed in a fever of spite
Beyond your tunnel vision reality fades
Like shadows into the night

To martyr yourself to caution
Is not going to help at all
Because there'll be no safety in numbers
When the Right One walks out of the door

Can you see your days blighted by darkness?
Is it true you beat your fists on the floor?
Stuck in a word of isolation
While the ivy grows over the door

So I open my door to my enemies
And I ask could we wipe the slate clean
But they tell me to please go fuck myself
You know you just can't win

High Hopes
Beyond the horizon of the place we lived when we were young
In a world of magnets and miracles
Our thoughts strayed constantly and without boundary
The ringing of the division bell had begun

Along the Long Road and on down the Causeway
Do they still meet there by the Cut

There was a ragged band that followed in our footsteps
Running before time took our dreams away
Leaving the myriad small creatures trying to tie us to the ground
To a life consumed by slow decay

The grass was greener
The light was brighter
With friends surrounded
The nights of wonder

Looking beyond the embers of bridges glowing behind us
To a glimpse of how green it was on the other side
Steps taken forwards but sleepwalking back again
Dragged by the force of some inner tide

At a higher altitude with flag unfurled
We reached the dizzy heights of that dreamed of world

Encumbered forever by desire and ambition
There's a hunger still unsatisfied
Our weary eyes still stray to the horizon
Though down this road we've been so many times

The grass was greener
The light was brighter
The taste was sweeter
The nights of wonder
With friends surrounded
The dawn mist glowing
The water flowing
The endless river

Forever and ever




***************************

Nella ricorrenza del 20simo anniversario dell'uscita dell'album, i fans possono godere di una "Deluxe Edition". La bellezza di 5 vinili (colorati), più un CD, più un DVD. Consiglio però questo "package" solo agli appassionati più sfegatati dei Pink Floyd: l'opera infatti non è tra le loro migliori, nonostante i bellissimi testi. Musicalmente - a parte "High Hopes" e poche altre eccezioni tra gli undici tracks -, la leggendaria band londinese ha prodotto cose ben più pregiate. Per chi non conoscesse il disco e volesse possederlo, va benone anche il CD normale (comunque rimasterizzato).

Qui sotto, "High Hopes" in una delle tante cover version (artisti: Gosia Cembrzyńska & Paweł Skwierawski)


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24 ago 2014

Brano del giorno: "Island"

New Model Army

 Justin Sullivan, cantante dei New Model Army, è un ateo che ha sempre creduto all'ordine prestabilito della natura. In molte canzoni Sullivan accusa le gesta degli uomini, gesta che hanno portato alle gravi conseguenze (per l'ambiente e per la stessa umanità) che tutti quanti abbiamo sotto gli occhi. 

"Island" (2005, sull'album Carnival) è in pratica la storia dell'Isola di Pasqua, una civiltà "degenerata" per motivi rimasti ancora poco chiari. Probabilmente, diverse ondate di colonizzatori provenienti dall'arcipelago polinesiano aumentarono drasticamente la popolazione, consumando le risorse limitate del luogo; inoltre, la volontà, da parte di una o più fazioni, di costruire i moai, i grandi busti dedicati forse agli spiriti degli antenati e per il cui trasporto verso le coste vennero abbattute interi palmeti, diede adito a vere e proprie guerre tra le tribù. Seguirono esecuzioni di massa e forse anche cannibalismo. Risultato catastrofico di una mancata collaborazione tra le varie componenti di indigeni.

La canzone è un'allegoria all'odierna Gran Bretagna, con una frecciata alle forze politiche di destra, che si rifiutano di aprirsi all'Europa, insieme a una critica alla cittadinanza troppo chiusa in se stessa, troppo attenta al proprio ombelico, e dunque sul punto di commettere suicidio morale. 

 




The wind blows keen across the ridge ........ Il vento soffia forte verso le colline
Black against a charcoal grey ....... ........ . Nero su uno sfondo grigio-carbone
We climb up here by the winding path ........ Noi ci arrampichiamo su un sentiero ventoso
made so long ago .... ........ ........ ........ .... scavato tanto tempo fa
In the valley below the last few lights ........ Nella valle sottostante le ultime luci
Glow just like the embers of a fire ... ............ Brillano come tizzoni accesi
We begin to remember .... ........ ........ .......... Cominciamo a ricordarci

We begin to remember .. ........ ........ ............ Cominciamo a ricordarci

We came by the sea and we took the land ... ..Venimmo dal mare e occupammo la terra
We spread out across the plains ... ............ ... ..Ci stanziammo sulle pianure
And on and on to the mountains ... ............ ... ..Fin su sopra le montagne
Until there was nothing left to conquer ... ........Fin quando non rimase nulla da conquistare
The sound of chopping trees ... ............ ... ........Il suono degli alberi che venivano abbattuti
echoed through the woods ... ............................echeggiava per i boschi
We built the ships and the houses ... .................Costruimmo le navi e le case
And the bridges and the fortifications ... ...........E i ponti e le fortificazioni
Until there was nothing left to build with ....Finché non ci fu più materiale per costruire
Now in the silver grey dome of the sky ......E adesso nella cupola grigio-argentea del cielo
The birds fly home for winter ... ............ ... .......Gli uccelli vanno a svernare a casa
And we all come down to the shore ... ...............E tutti noi scendiamo verso la costa
and stare across the waves ... ............ ... ............e fissiamo lo onde
We've got to get off the island ... ............ ... .......Dobbiamo andarcene dall'isola

We carved monuments to the angry Gods ... .....Abbiamo fatto statue per gli irati Dèi
We hauled stone across the deserts ... .......Abbiamo spinto le pietre attraverso i deserti
of our own making ... .........................................creati da noi
From the standing stones to the villages ... .......Dai monoliti fino ai villaggi
To the shining palaces  ... ....... ... ....... ... ....... ...Ai palazzi splendenti
looking out over the water ... ............... ............ costruiti a ridosso delle acque
The soil is growing thin, .. ............... ............ .La terra diviene poca,
the yeld running low.. ............... .................... il raccolto diminuisce
There's too many of us here, too many of us here ...Siamo in troppi qui, siamo in troppi
And now ragged ribbons of rain sweep in ... ............ E adesso cade un muro di pioggia
And the birds fly home for winter ... ........... ............ E gli uccelli vanno a svernare a casa
And we all come down to the shore ... ......................E tutti noi scendiamo verso la costa
and stare across the wave... ......................... .............E fissiamo le onde
We've got to get off the islands ... ............ ................Dobbiamo andarcene dall'isola



Leggi l'articolo su Wikipedia (in inglese) che bene spiega le relazioni con la letteratura e con la politica di questa band britannica di post punk






No Rest for the Wicked - Tracks:

1. "Frightened"
2. "Ambition"
3. "Grandmother's Footsteps"
4. "Better Than Them"
5. "My Country"
6. "No Greater Love"
7. "No Rest"
8. "Young, Gifted and Skint"
9. "Drag It Down"
10. "Shot 18"
11. "The Attack"


Discografia

(soltanto studio album)

23 ago 2014

Brano del giorno: "The Man with the Child in His Eyes"



I hear him,
Before I go to sleep,
And focus on the day that's been,
I realize he's there,
When I turn the light off,
And turn over,
Nobody knows about my man,
They think he's lost on some horizon,
And suddenly I find myself listening,
To a man I've never known before,
Telling me about the sea,
Oh his love is to eternity.

Oh he's here again,
The man with the child in his eyes,
Oh he's here again,
The man with the child in his eyes

He's very understanding and he's so,
Aware of all my situations,
When I stay up late,
He's always with me,
What I feel when I hesitate,
Oh I'm so worried about my love,
They say "No, No it won't last forever",
And here I am again my girl,
Wondering what on earth I am doing here,
Maybe he doesn't love me,
I just took a trip on my love for him.

Oh he's here again,
The man with the child in his eyes,
Oh he's here again,
The man with the child in his eyes




Songwriters: Bush, Kate
The Man With The Child In His Eyes lyrics © EMI Music Publishing



Kate Bush, La Boush, la più indipendente tra tutte le artiste mainstream d'Inghilterra, fu lanciata da David Gilmore dei Pink Floyd. Ebbe immediatamente successo con titoli come "Babooshka" e "Wuthering Heights" e decise di automanagerializzarsi, di non accettare alcuna imposizione da parte delle major
Tra i musicisti che hanno collaborato con lei ci sono Roy Harper, Peter Gabriel, Eric Clapton, Nigel Kennedy e Prince. 
Tricky, Björk e tanti altri, ma in primo luogo Tori Amos, la considerano un loro idolo. 

Se amate la musica di Kate (per alcuni una diva intramontabile, per altri una gatta isterica...) visitate il seguente link:

Divas: the power of the female voice: The Craft Of Love: the songs of Kate Bush, part one
A rare celestial event took place on the first of May: Kate Bush appeared in public! She attended the South Bank Show Awards to receive the [...]


Per quanto riguarda Topolàin... ebbene, ammetterlo non è difficile: lui adora Kate, e due sue canzoni in particolare: quelle in pratica che la lanciarono nell'universo del pop, cioè:





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22 ago 2014

La realtà dei musicisti in Italia... ma non solo



L'arte per l'arte. Vale anche per tanti letterati e cineasti: o hai qualche cara, carissima persona che finanzia la tua passione, oppure devi avere davvero un sacco di fortuna per arrivare a diventare un professionista.


"Mi chiamo Ila, sono una musicista e nel febbraio 2008 ho girato un documentario sulla vita dei musicisti in Italia. Ho raccolto interviste e dati, parlato con musicisti, gestori di locali, gente del pubblico, insegnanti e produttori. Questo documentario senza pretese ha come scopo quello di documentare la situazione italiana, i pro e i contro del fare il musicista, i problemi, le emozioni e le possibili soluzioni... sempre che se ne trovino.Hanno collaborato a questo progetto, chi con idee, chi con un'intervista: Teo Marchese, Teo Airoldi, Gè Scarpato, Fabrizio Casalino, Dario Filippi, Carlo Sinigaglia, koine jazz, Maria Lapi, Federico Ferri, Walter Lupi, Paolo Filippi, Pinuccio del Ninfea, Stefano Galli, Federico Gelli, Paolo Cirelli, Max, Giorgia Fazzini, Ilaria Pastore, Fabrizio Gelli e molti altri..."

9 ago 2014

Focus



I Focus sono un gruppo olandese che hanno accompagnato il prog rock fin dai suoi primi vagiti. Vennero fondati nel 1969 dall'organista e flautista Thijs van Leer, diplomato al conservatorio. Il loro mix di classica, rock e jazz costituisce il motore della band, che nel 1978 si sciolse e poi si riformò a più riprese; l'ultima volta nel 2002 (e sono ancora attivi!).

"Hocus Pocus" e "Sylvia" sono i loro brani più famosi.


I membri originari Thijs van Leer (tastiere, flauto, voce) e Pierre van der Linden (percussioni) fanno ancora parte del gruppo. Menno Gootjes è l'attuale chitarrista (ruolo ricoperto un tempo da Jan Akkerman, divenuto una leggenda dentro e fuori i Focus...), mentre al basso c'è Bobby Jacobs (altri bassisti, in passato: Martin Dresden, Cyril Havermans, Bert Ruiter).



Anche l'ascoltatore occasionale non può non notare il tocco "psichedelico" in molte loro composizioni. In "Sylvia" ad esempio lo psychedelic style è la patina che impreziosisce il ritmo jazz (non jazz pesante, ma lieve ed elegante) insieme alle progressioni classiche. Bello comunque anche il solo di chitarra.



Sono stati riscoperti quando il loro "Hocus Pocus" venne usato dalla Nike per lo spot 2010 World Cup (regista: il messicano Alejandro González Iñárritu). Lo stesso brano è stato inserito nel film RoboCop (2014).



Ecco, nel video sottostante, lo spot della Nike. "Hocus Pocus" potete sentirlo più o meno a partire da 1:15