Wednesday, March 6, 2013

Week Forty-Four: The Sun, The Moon, & The Stars - Muse - "Starlight" - Black Holes and Revelations


This week, I am going to cover songs that talk about the sun, the moon, and the stars... in that very order
@ ( * @ ( * @ ( * @ ( * @ ( * @ ( * @ ( *


I somehow missed out on Muse when they debuted this hit in the States at some point in 2006. I attribute it to the fact that I was vehemently anti-radio, at that juncture, and I had very minimal time to watch TV, not that MTV or VH-1 even really played much music, due to the plague of reality TV popularity.

I did finally catch wind of this band in late 2007 when I was forced to listen to the radio while borrowing my mother's vehicle since mine was being repaired. Upon hearing “Starlight” for the first time, it was stuck in my head, and I hummed it incessantly, until I could finally purchase the album in its entirety.

Sadly, once Stephanie Meyer declared Muse to be one of her favorite bands, as well as a huge influence on her writing, many of my students, who are/were Twi-hard Twits, declared Muse to be their new favorite band, even though “Supermassive Black Hole” was the only Muse song they had even heard. It's so hard to like or respect anything associated with glittering vampires, but it's also really difficult not to like this song.

When my most recent ex-boyfriend and I first met in 2009, we realized that we shared a mutual appreciation for this band because we both had this very song set as our ring tone. He was actually from England, and he knew about Muse long before I ever did; he had even snagged some very rare recordings of theirs before he headed over to the States.  

He and I also shared a mutual disgust for Stephanie Meyer's simple and repetitious writing style. Somebody had donated a copy of the book to my classroom library. I brought it home one day, and we attempted to read it. I think we made it through a few chapters at most; it was just unbearable!!! I was able to at least credit her with making some of my students more open-minded to other people's differences, even if she had to resort to the bedazzled living dead.

I'm also including another favorite by Muse called "Time is Running Out"...




Far away
This ship has taken me far away
Far away from the memories
Of the people who care if I live or die


Starlight
I will be chasing a starlight
Until the end of my life
I don't know if it's worth it anymore


Hold you in my arms
I just wanted to hold you in my arms


My life
You electrify my life
Let's conspire to ignite
All the souls that would die just to feel alive


I'll never let you go
If you promise not to fade away
Never fade away


Our hopes and expectations
Black holes and revelations
Our hopes and expectations
Black holes and revelations


Hold you in my arms
I just wanted to hold you in my arms


Far away
This ship has taken me far away
Far away from the memories
Of the people who care if I live or die


I'll never let you go
If you promise not to fade away
Never fade away


Our hopes and expectations
Black holes and revelations
Our hopes and expectations
Black holes and revelations


Hold you in my arms
I just wanted to hold you in my arms
I just wanted to hold


Tuesday, March 5, 2013

Week Forty-Four: The Sun, The Moon, & The Stars - The Violet Burning - "Moon Radio" - Demonstrates Plastic and Elastic

This week, I am going to cover songs that talk about the sun, the moon, and the stars... in that very order
@ ( * @ ( * @ ( * @ ( * @ ( * @ ( * @ ( *

I discovered this band through one of my many Pandora stations. I think I was cleaning my house one Saturday when it found its way into the mix, and I was stopped dead in my tracks. I want to say that it was on my Jesus & Mary Chain station, but I cannot be 100% certain about that.

What I am certain about, though, is that this song totally rocks!!! I can't believe that I never heard it before Pandora.

I don't know much about the band, but I think I read somewhere that they also dabble in Christian rock a bit. I tried to verify that through wikipedia, but I didn't see it on there; however, some of their song titles would lead me to believe that it's true.

They don't have an official video for this tune; so I will put a clip of them playing it live below the lyrics...


We were swept away
In sunlit plaster days
My heart steaming
Your eyes way too bright
You lifted up in flight
And left me singing

Didn't you get the feeling from the radio?
Didn't I see you racing across the sky?
If you ever reach the moon before I do, wave goodbye

Somewhere I belong
Where the light is strong and nothing's missing
I love you valentine, sleep with stars tonight
I'm still steaming

Didn't you get the feeling from the radio?
Didn't I see the secrets in your eyes?
If you ever reach the moon before I do, wave goodbye

Love, it leaves you blind
Some of the time
Your head starts spinning
And I took your line, your riddles and rhymes
Shimmer and shine like lunar

Didn't you get the feeling from the radio?
Didn't I see you racing across the sky?
If you ever reach the moon before I do, wave goodbye



Monday, March 4, 2013

Week Forty-Four: The Sun, The Moon, & The Stars - Crowded House - "Distant Sun" - Recurring Dream: The Very Best of Crowded House

This week, I am going to cover songs that talk about the sun, the moon, and the stars... in that very order
@ ( * @ ( * @ ( * @ ( * @ ( * @ ( * @ ( *

Some weeks, I feel very inspired, and I know exactly which band or which genre I am going to cover next... then other weeks, I have no clue which direction to take. Usually, when I get to that point, I set my iPod on shuffle and wait for something to strike me.

Fortunately, it didn't take long for this Crowded House tune, "Distant Sun", to find its way into the mix. I should probably dedicate an entire week to Crowded House because they have so many amazing songs, but I would feel like a bit of a fraud if I did that since I did not really get into this band until much, much later and don't know a whole lot about them. I always loved "Don't Dream It's Over" and "Something So Strong", but it wasn't until I purchased this greatest hits CD, at some point when I was in college, that I realized that they are truly a phenomenal band!

Therefore, I will tack on a bunch of my favorites by Crowded House below the lyrics... and there are many more... find 'em on youtube!!!


Tell me all the things you would change
I don't pretend to know what you want
When you come around and spin my top
Time and again, time and again
No fire where I lit my spark
I am not afraid of the dark
Where your words devour my heart
And put me to shame, put me to shame


When your seven worlds collide
Whenever I am by your side
And dust from a distant sun
Will shower over everyone


You're still so young to travel so far
Old enough to know who you are
Wise enough to carry the scars
Without any blame, there's no one to blame
It's easy to forget what you learned
Waiting for the thrill to return
Feeling your desire burn
You're drawn to the flame


When your seven worlds collide
Whenever I am by your side
Dust from a distant sun
Will shower over everyone
Dust from a distant sun
Will shower over everyone


And I'm lying on the table
Washed out in the flood
Like a Christian fearing vengeance from above
I don't pretend to know what you want
But I offer love


Seven worlds will collide
Whenever I am by your side
Dust from a distant sun
Will shower over everyone


As time slips by, and on and on
Let your mind go, anywhere it wants, anywhere it wants
Let your mind
As time slips by, and on and on
Let your mind go, anywhere it wants, anywhere it wants