“We are all inventors, each sailing out on a voyage of discovery, guided each by a private chart, of which there is no duplicate. The world is all gates, all opportunities.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson
Feb28
Monday Morning Wisdom #351
Monthly Archives: February 2022
Feb27
From the Creator’s Heart #348
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. (Revelation 21:1 NIV)
Feb26
Looking Forward to the Grammys, Part V
Today we’re looking at the nominees for Best Dance/ Electronic Recording.
Hero, Afrojack and David Guetta:
Loom, Ólafur Arnalds featuring Bonobo:
Before, James Blake:
Heartbreak, Bonobo and Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs (This video has a strobe warning, so if you’re prone to seizures, you might want to watch the music-only version on YouTube):
You Can Do It, Caribou:
Alive, Rüfüs Du Sol:
The Business, Tiësto:
This category made me realize how much I’m influenced by visuals. For example, You Can Do It should get the award for Most Annoying Vocals (sorry, Caribou, that’s not a real category, or you’d win it for sure), but the dogs in the video are so engaging I didn’t really notice at first what a horrible song it is. Also, I didn’t like Before and Heartbreak when I looked at the music-only videos; but I liked them a lot with the videos shown here. Also, I like the dancing in Before much better than the dancing in Loom, so I want to judge Before more favorably, which isn’t exactly fair. And then, the video for The Business is a little creepy, which made me not want to like it at all.
So, to be fair, over the course of a couple of days I listened to the songs while playing solitaire so I wouldn’t see the videos and be influenced by them. The repetitive nature of You Can Do It and Loom disqualified them for me. The rhythms of Hero, Before, Heartbreak, Alive, and The Business all make me want to dance. But each of the songs has elements of repetition, and with repeated listenings, I found them annoying. The one that annoyed me least was Hero, and its upbeat mood and great message make it the best candidate for the award, in my opinion.
Now it’s your turn. Did you also find yourself judging the songs on the basis of the videos? Which one do you think should get the award for Best Dance/ Electronic Recording on the basis of the music? Please share your thoughts in the comments below.
Have you seen the other parts of this series? Part I: Best Music Video, Part II: Song of the Year, Part III: Best Global Music Performance, and Part IV: Best Contemporary Christian Music Performance/ Song.
Feb25
Creative Juice #283
A dozen articles chosen especially to spark your creativity this weekend.
- Disclaimer: some very inappropriate stuff here, but the rest of it is so funny I couldn’t not share. Original ideas.
- The case for reading books you might find objectionable.
- How public libraries are becoming true community centers. It can happen in your town. Make it so!
- Oh, the satisfaction of finishing a quilt you started a long time ago—and a pretty quilt at that!
- Write short stories like Kurt Vonnegut.
- Spectacular quilts.
- I love this artist’s Instagram page. She posts some in-progress videos that are mesmerizing to watch.
- Architectural photography.
- Love stories. I wanted to save these for next Valentine’s Day, but I’d probably forget, so you’re getting them now. You’re welcome.
- This sketch artist draws portraits of people in recovery and surrounds them with their stories.
- What’s special about Ukraine?
- Van Dyck’s portraits and the clothing of his subjects.
Feb24
Video of the Week #356: The Allegro from the Bach Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 Transcribed for Organ
Gorgeous!
Feb23
Wordless Wednesday: Firesticks
Feb22
Looking Forward to the Grammys, Part IV
Today, let’s look at the nominations for Best Contemporary Christian Music Performance/Song. I used to be much more tuned in to this category. I’m familiar with Kirk Franklin and CeCe Winans, but the other nomineed performers are new to me.
We Win, performed by Kirk Franklin and Lil Baby; Kirk Franklin, Dominique Jones, Cynthia Nunn and Justin Smith, songwriters. This song was written for the new Space Jam movie:
Hold Us Together (Hope Mix) performed by H.E.R. and Tauren Wells; Josiah Bassey, Dernst Emile and H.E.R., songwriters
Man of Your Word performed by Chandler Moore and KJ Scriven; Jonathan Jay, Nathan Jess and Chandler Moore, songwriters. I have reservations about Christian worship songs that repeat one or two phrases ad infinitim:
Believe For It performed by CeCe Winans; Dwan Hill, Kyle Lee, CeCe Winans and Mitch Wong, songwriters. Oh my, toward the end, this song is very much like Man of Your Word in that the same words are repeated over and over:
Jireh performed by Elevation Worship and Maverick City Music featuring Chandler Moore and Naomi Raine; Chris Brown, Steven Furtick, Chandler Moore and Naomi Raine, songwriters:
These are all wonderful performances with beautiful vocal harmonies, but the one that gives me chills is Jireh, though I could do without the repetitive ending. Jireh’s my pick.
Now it’s your turn. Which of these songs do you think deserves the Grammy for Best Contemporary Christian Music Performance/Song, and why? Please share in the comments below.
Have you seen the other parts of this series? Part I: Best Music Video. Part II: Song of the Year, Part III: Best Global Music Performance.
Feb21
Monday Morning Wisdom #350
“Arbitrary power is most easily established on the ruins of liberty abused to licentiousness.” ~George Washington
Feb20
From the Creator’s Heart #347
Feb19
Looking Forward to the Grammys, Part III
Today we’re exploring the nominees for the Grammy for Best Global Music Performance. This is an interesting category, sounds we may not be used to.
Mohabbat sung by Arooj Aftab (Pakistan):
Do Yourself performedby Angelique Kidjo (Benin) and Burna Boy (Nigeria):
Pà Pá Pà performedby Femi Kuti (Nigeria):
Blewu performed by Yo-Yo Ma (France, USA) and Angelique Kidjo (Benin):
Essence by WizKid featuring Tems (both from Nigeria):
How to judge these? Because the Grammys are awarded by the Recording Academy, an American entity, and voted on by its members, is it appropriate to judge world music with American ears? I love Yo-Yo Ma, but his collaboration with Angelique Kidjo comes off as kind of a weird Western/African fusion. The first two appeal to my white ears the most, but it’s hard for me to choose between the plaintive vocals and introspective accompaniment of Mohabbat and the energetic rhythms and African exuberance of Do Yourself. I think if I have to choose, I cast my vote for Mohabbat.
Now it’s your turn. Which of the five nominees for Best Global Music Performance should get the Grammy, and why? Share in the comments below.
Have you seen the other parts of this series? Part I: Best Music Video. Part II: Song of the Year.
ARHtistic License 