You know that when it comes to nice clubs, I am always the one to go. Since I don't have time to come to Ibiza to check out the famous Pacha club, Pacha came to Vilnius instead. And my friend from London came right in time to accompany me in this mission. When it comes to clubbing in Vilnius, even with international clubs, it gets a local touch. So there is a risk - either you get the right crowd in, or the crowd is completely wrong. E.g., Fashion TV club in Vilnius didn't get it right and had to close. So I was curious how will it be with Pacha. I was pleasantly surprised. The first impression - face control - was based not on the "looks" criteria, but more on "manners". Of course, you can't look trashy, but you don't need to wear D&G or Armani either to get in. But if you keep on fighting to get in instead of waiting in the line, the bouncers will ask you to leave. That worked - the crowd was really decent over there. Diverse, friendly people. Fancy drinks - special Pacha cherry mojito and other good stuff. Good music. GREAT music. Lexicon Avenue really took the crowd to heaven, and R'n'B area seemed to be crowded as well. It's a small thing, it's nice to see Vilnius in their official tour listing, why they cannot learn typing "Vilnius" in a correct way? We still have to work on our city branding :) But anyway, let's not really care about this, take a look at what it looks like...
Who you are? And where am I? F**k it's Monday. Where does Monday get you? At the unknown friends' home, in bed or at work. And how does it feel? Friday would be much better... You pick the flashbacks of the weekend and say good bye. The pleasant mind trip starts.
- mondayjazz.com
Every Monday, my office, like probably any other office on Monday, has a certain amount of madness involved. The head is full of weekend moments, while I am telling myself that I should focus and start my working week.
But I love Mondays. Just because it is the only day in the week when I can receive a new Mondayjazz mix, plug my earphones in, and experience this sudden transformation from chaos to order. Ready for the rest of the week.
OMG! It's December already! I realized it only yesterday when an X-mas tree was brought to our office, to be decorated. Honestly, we have more Dutch winter than the Lithuanian winter over here, as there is no snow yet!
So what have I been up to in the past month:
Moments: ...a small Energy'07 reunion in Vilnius - with Diana, Jana, randomly met Vitalijus, joining the boys party congratulating Danny with his birthday, laughing a lot with (or from) his porn XXX team, then experiencing the so-called high-fashion party in Champagne Bar , which appeared to be quite average. ...cocktails, including a mojito (for Filipe) with Piret who is incredibly often coming to Vilnius these days =) ...so much adrenaline when trying to move wooden bricks of the Jenga tower during the drinks with colleagues. Afterwards moving to playing "Taboo" (or "Alias" as they call it here) and seeing that sometimes understanding each other from half of the word is not that difficult! ...lotsa lotsa people dressed like so 1920s and dancing all night long! Lindyhop is my new entry on my dances-to-learn list, and definitely it goes well with my love for jazz music. It's the third month I attend the course and I love it! ... a different creativity workshop in my home AIESEC LC. For the first time in preparation for this training, I didn't use any aiesec-related material, kept it all within my personal experience, tuned it with a few improv excercises and real examples how a little innovation can turn into big money. It's not difficult to be creative, and it seems that the message came across. ...artsy crowd in the opening of Fluxus-East exhibition, with wine and nice meals, with a crazy exibition attached. Fluxus is a movement initially was supposed to be an anti-art movement or so called "art-joke". And indeed he exhibition reflected it - everyone was able to listen to funny music and see all kinds of crazy stuff which is not art, but makes sense. Even play flux ping-pong (see left), which has not only interesting table, but the rackets also were not standard: one of them has a hole, another is completely soft, third one has a very rough surface... Art is fun! Even the former mayor of Vilnius couldn't resist to give it a shot. Very refreshing.
What is coming up next is... Winter Holidays, of course! Can't wait :) I am going to leave you with my powerplay for this month, which is another local masterpiece on MTV!
"yeah yeah, I'm alright, I keep power forever...." - yeap that's the way I feel!
* pic from: http://www.deepfun.com/2006_07_01_archive.html * Video of Happyendless called "Power Forever"
I was watching MTV EMAs last night. I did not like the ceremony itself as I did the last year, but let's not talk about that. I am just extremely happy, because for the first time one of MTV trophies goes to Lithuania - to Jurga, the Lithaunia singer I wrote about some time ago.
Even more, I am also happy for our fellow Estonians, because they have won the New Sounds of Europe Award, the nominees for which have been voted by all people from Europe via internet and SMS during the show itself. Out of 18 semi-finalists Bedwetters from Estonia, together with other two bands (from Turkey and Romania), went to the finals. Even Klaxons got voted out before the show. And at the end of the show, Nelly Furtado announces that a young band from Estonia has won!! Yahoo!
I think they are really worth it. When I saw them on MTV B-Day, they gave all their soul on the stage. And you should check out this video:
I rarely post Lithuanian music in this blog. I think I did just one post, and now it's the second. I am not a big fan of Lithuanian music, as 85 percent of it is oriented to teenagers up to 15, or people living in the countryside, who don't care that much about the long term value of music, it's just for making quick cash from records and concerts.
BUT, this is one of those 15 percent of good stuff. Jurga is amazing. She has a great voice, and she will not go to any single compromise in terms of quality: music, production, music video - it is the best what I've seen in Lithuanian music scene so far. This is a quality entertainment product, and she is one of the best paid singers in Lithuania. So you can make money with quality product!
Check out her video and hear it yourself! What do you think?
I'm so excited I don't even know where to start!! But this evening Vilnius IS the place to be ;) For two reasons:
<-- These girls. When I was in my late teens and was dreaming to become an artist (I still am on my spare time ;)) and was into all that hip culture life, I saw this video. It seemed so cool but so far away from me - in the big world. Afterwards, I got to go to US, to Western Europe and Asia and the world seemed not so big anymore. But now when I see that Chicks on Speed(CoS) are coming to Contemporary Art Center (CAC) in Vilnius, bringing their performance and exhibition, my heart cannot help beating faster :)
Here is a short excerpt about CoS from the CAC article:
"Punk was also the movement and the moment when women started truly rocking for themselves, incorporating explicit post-feminist political and performance strategies into their stage-personas, costuming, and stage-productions; high among them being raw sexuality, nudity, inflammatory language and sloganeering. (...) The Chicks On Speed are all that and more! An all girl band, performance ensemble, visual art ensemble, which also release and produce music made by women on their record label. "
And the reason number two for this night rocking is nobody else but Ellen Allien>, the Goddess of electronica from Germany! She is playing in all biggest electronica festivals in the world, as I heard it took a while tho persuade her to come to play in Lithuania, but damn - it's worth it! I will not expand telling too much about her style, but electronica lovers for sure know what I'm talking about :)
Im not much of a feminist, but this girly evening with best girls on stage, with nice artsy extras sounds extremely good:)
Last Sunday I had the luck to be in a closing concert of Riga's City Celebration, which was also a birthday partay of MTV in Baltic. After a 5 hour trip with our entertaining bus, having some cocktails on the way we were even more excited to see the bands on stage, which are the highlights in the Baltics. Here are some videos:
Mantas - so-called Lithuanian Robbie Williams. Good looking man, great voice, not exactly my style of music, but O.K. :)
Melo M - I would say those Latvians are my new fave band. Playing most famous pop covers with chellos sounds so damn awesome :
Since I liked them so much - again Melo M, this time with vocals:
The headliner - Digitalism . The crowd of 26 000 people went crazy when they were playing:
Afterparty was held in a tiny space in Riga's most famous club essential, where Metal on Metal DJs rocked (I'm so proud - they are the first Lithuanian DJs who are working with SKINT Records):
That's the update :) I am going to catch up with my sleeping now ;)
"Music gets another dimension when it's shared" - my friend Aurelien has borrowed it from some blog, and I've borrowed it from his IM message, because it is so true for me. I believe that music contains so much more than words, and that it connects people instantly.
Instead of writing an update about the month of July, I'll better share my top 5 music videos of this month.
5. Justice - D.A.N.C.E.
I love the drawings on T-shirts, and the whole video is so playful and fun :) And, I did do quite a bit of dancing recently :)
4. Paul Bjorn and John "Young Folks"
Because it makes me smile, relax and enjoy life. Especially when you meet best buddies after a long working day. Also remembering the folks in A'dam and Brussels that I've missed a lot.
3. Justice vs Simian - We are Your Friends
because it reminds me of my work. Don't have to worry, I love it more than ever!:)
2. 30 Seconds To Mars - From Yesterday
When I saw this video for the first time, I thought - WOW! I like the way that it's made, and I listen to this song whenever I feel I'm getting into a dip. The video is just simply amazing, and I love the frontman :D
1. Frankie Valli/The Four Seasons - Beggin'
Hypnotising video. I watch it and I'm in another world.
Last weekend:Due to weather conditions it was not Open Air anymore, but it was the same good - held in EXIT, one of the best clubs in Lithuania.
The night was awesome - good beats from fantastic DJs - Lauris Lee and ignas i.v. (LT) as well as international starts - Deep Dish and Gus Gus. The first one was a bit harder than Deep Dish we hear on the radio (say "Flashdance"), but was the same rockin:) President Bongo (Gus Gus) was awesome :) Shook our booties all night long ;) Especially during this song:
I have been a fan of lounge music compiled and released under the names of world famous bars like Cafe del Mar, Hotel Costes or Buddha Bar (wiki it yourself, )if you want). Now I have discovered another one - it`s called Supperclub. I don`t remember how I ended up finding out about this bar, which besides locations in San Fracisco, Rome, Istanbul and others, is also present HERE, in Amsterdam!!
Let`s say I got hooked up. Currently on Supperclub 6 presents Rome compilation, but I believe this is just a start. I have found video of one of the songs in YouTube - Quannum "I`ve changed my mind", which sits next to other geniuses like DJ Food and Bonobo in this CD.
I am so going to Supperclub in Amsterdam. Who wants to join me?
Had no plans for last weekend. Slept all Friday night (after two conferences.. i think that`s fair).
Saturday went to my improv class, which was again great. Today we also tried to improvise in singing, which was challenging, but I loved it! We had two rapping bands, and ours, of course, won. We also found a human beat box talent in our group and discovered that rapping has nothing to do with the music, but a lot with an attitude. Later on we had a cup of coffee in Crea cafe with our group, which is always a nice activity to do to get to know people better. For example, that at least three of us are living 5 minutes away from each other. Amsterdam is tiny, the theory has been proved again.
I also had my first ever pure Dutch party in my life, in a very Dutch house with around 40 Dutch people and 3 internationals, with house music and lots of beer. In the Netherlands that is not a common practice, you have to get invited to Dutch parties. So I was lucky this time! 10 points! And that was a good fun! 10 extra points for house parties.
Sunday was a lot of doing nothing (you can call it ME time as well, enjoying it so much) and jazz concert in the evening... Someone will be jealous now... That was Saskia Laroo playing that night! It was a good mix of jazz classics, funk and bossa nova, cozy atmosphere and a show full of motion. Honestly, I did not want to leave!
Today.. Monday again. You know, work and stuff. Lovin` it though.
In a search for creative energy, I use YouTube. You have probably noticed I have been posting a lot in the past days. Quite inspiring one is over here - Paula sent this link for me. And I tell you, when you read that this whole video is done only by using Canon DSLR still camera, I do find it inspiring...
I love Franz Ferdinand!! OK I might not be the original one, but this is one of the bands that are tested by time on me, and I definitely can say that their records are something that I always keep returning to. I saw them live in Luxembourg and I would not mind seeing them live again! And I know that there are some people who will definitely join me (Makis, keep me posted!) The guitars, the lyrics, the ATTITUDE... I love it. At the moment you can basically hear me singing this:
Walk Away
I swapped my innocence for pride Crushed the end within my stride Said I'm strong now I know that I'm a leaver I love the sound of you walking away, you walking away Mascara bleeds a blackened tear, oh And I am cold, yes, I'm cold But not as cold as you are I love the sound of you walking away, you walking away I love the sound of you walking away, walking away, hey hey
Why don't you walk away? Why don't you walk away?
Why don't you walk away? No buildings will fall down Won't you walk away No quake will split the ground Won't you walk away The sun won't swallow the sky Won't you walk away? Statues will not cry
Don't you walk away X Why don't you walk away? Why don't you walk away? Why don't you walk away? Hey
mmmmm
I cannot turn to see those eyes As apologies may rise I must be strong and stay an unbeliver X And love the sound of you walking away, you walking away Mascara bleeds into my eye, oh And I'm not cold, I am old At least as old as you are La la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la And as you walk away Oh, as you walk away
Oh, as you walk away My headstone crumbles down As you walk away The Hollywood winds will howl As you walk away The Kremlin's falling As you walk away Radio Four is static
As you walk away Oh, as you walk away Oh, as you walk away Oh, as you walk away Hey
The stab of stiletto On a silent night Stalin smiles and Hitler laughs Churchill claps Mao Tse Tung on the back
I could have shared about one of the nicest dinners I had with my ex-flatmates in Diemen tonight... But it is not describable, it was fun! Good food, good bullshitting session, getting a bit tipsy and just happy... And there is one song that is in my head recently... and the video is also very very nice. I am sure you know it, and here it is... lovin` it
I said one of my missions is to spread the word about the best music in the world. However, I would like to spread the word about the worst or the most funny one, too. Since now I have TV, I often turn on Dutch MTV or TMF, another music channel. And there are two `masterpieces` of Dutch music scene - thsi is what I have to tolerate :)
Numero 1 - Dutch version of `broliai Aliukai` (very tacky Lithuanian pop duo):
Numero 2 - a cute guy in a bad song and even worse video. You call it dance hit? Couldn`t find anyone to compare it to :) :
It was not planned to be that busy. But it was. And it turned out to be very very good!
My dear friend Piret was in Rotterdam for SSGN board transition and planning, and it was the only spot when I could actually meet her before she goes all the way back to Brazil. So I had to make it! It was soo fascinating, I met her in Baltic Synergy in 2005, when we both applied for international MCs, and now we got to see each other after a whole year!! We had lots of things to talk about, to catch up with our experiences and news.
Apart from that, was also nice to come to the AI office and catch up with other people, with Lithuanian gang, with other long-time-not-seen ones. And get inspired again, I think AI office has something special in the air. There is about 60 AIESEC people in Rotterdam now, including task forces, regional boards and new AI team. Meeting the people that inspire - absolutely amazing, what else I can say! By the way, the African restaurant that Araz and Abhinav took us to, was excellent! Itw as in Dutch, I dont excaly remember the name, but it means 'Taste from Africa' ('Smaak van Africa'??, strongly reccomended.
I have spent way more time there than I've planned, but got to catch my last train to Brussels and still see Michal in his farewell party.
Next morning - sleep in, get up, shower, pack and back to the station. Luxembourg this time, and taht was a Rock-A-Field festival. And yes, it was totally in a field somewhere in the middle of nowhere in Luxembourg. Get off in a city, take a train to some village, walk for &.รจ km to parking lot, get picked up by bus, go to the festival site, walk another 500 m, get your bag checked, ticket, enter.
I was early, not too many people. Extremely hot. Everyone is baking and intensively consuming beer and other beverages. Bands start to play. First one - i don't know it, was average. It was cool observing the moves of the vocalist though. I should try to sketch something like this some time. Second band - some german one, also don't know, but I liked them very much!! That girl has a super good voice! Rocks! For sure i have to find out more about them.
Then we had an interruption of rain... then interruption of 2-3cm pieces of ice falling from the sky... man, it hurt! It went totally out of control, everybody started hiding anywhere they could, and there was not too much of a choice, as it was a grass field... well after the storm it became a mud field :) And all people had mud all over themselves :) Luckily i got around just with old jeans and shoes.
At any case, I didn't pay money for the rain, same as others, so we got to see the other bands as well :) Mando Diao. I didn't know them, but they rock!! The crowd went crazy, and their music is worth it! Raphael - French siple guy, very lyric and sentimental. Nice and soothing. Franz Ferdinand - frickin awesome!!! Since I love every single song of this band, it was more than great to see them rocking the field live - with Take Me Out, Matinee and Walk Away... ah, yeah! And finally, Placebo - the top of the concert. They were good. However, my expectations were higher than that. I was hoping to see that black-dressed mystic guy that i see in pics and videos, but I saw a guy in a suit! Mystery revealed. However, that didn't spoil the show itself - music was great, stage effects also great, and crowd also went crazy. By the way, crowd was surprisingly young - I even got to run into 16-year old Lithuanian girls and around 20 of their schoolmates. Quite funny :)
After the concert my adventures didn't end, as still I had to get back somehow. The transortation by bus from the field to the city was terrible, so luckily i got to meet a local family who kindly took me by their car to the station of Luxembourg. Where I also found out that there are no night trains to Brussels! However, it was more of a nice adventure, as Luxembourg was quiet, and I met two exchange students from the US who have missed their train to France, so having some conversations was a good way to kill some time before our first trains.
Monday morning I was happy to find my bed in place:)
Prepare for a million of posts to catch up with my life :)
Lithuania has 4 jazz festivals per year which is A LOT for country of this size. Since I'm in Belgium now, I have to look for my annual dose of live jazz in my life. And actually this is something that is not that difficult to find - lots of bars or clubs that play jazz are all over Brussels. And on 19-21 of May Brussels was hosting an annual Jazz Marathon, which, of course, wouldn't be complete without my presence :)
It was awesome :) Seems like all interns in Brussels accidentally gathered in the center and did a bar-hopping from one place to another, hearing everything from classical to funk or latino jazz, ending up four of us - Leon, Volodja, Boban, me and Osku, by this guy we were kindly invited to end the party at his place.
Jazz heals my soul;)! Belgium does have a good jazz, that's a fact. My discovery of the year is Larry, a singer with an incredible voice and super happy songs. And in her band there is a cute saxophonist ;) Even rain and cold didn't stop people from coming to to the square to listen for them, it made my festival.
Pictures will be flickring in my flickr in a couple of days... pls be patient;)
Some people love it, some people say that it is purely political and corrupt. Why do people make such a fuss out of this contest?
It's funny to see here the shock of some Belgian people when they saw the Lithuanian song. Of course, it is not the most sophisticated song in the world, but it got to the final! And Belgian didn't. Those results were voted by all people in Europe, so why take offense and blame countries that take a different approach that sweet-barbie-typo songs? Eurovision is about showing off the country, but it's also about winning. And Lithuanian song is the 6th - the highest we had ever in history fo Eurovision. Why do crappy songs win? That only proves that something is wrong with the whole concept of Eurovision.
And people are not blind, and they are not accepting it. They just take different approaches to this - some of them cancel their participation, some go to the stage and make a joke out of it.
You know that when it comes to nice clubs, I am always the one to go. Since I don't have time to come to Ibiza to check out the famous Pacha club, Pacha came to Vilnius instead. And my friend from London came right in time to accompany me in this mission.
