When sourcing a method to import my extensive iTunes library from my PC to my new Mac Book, Apple suggested the tedious task of burning all 6,600+ mp3s onto dvds, importing, and recreating the meticulous playlists. FML.
I’ve looked to your site before as a reference guide to making life easier by solving such inconvenient situations which make one think “there must be a better way.”
With that, I would like to thank you for making life easier time and time again. I raise a glass to you – a reference guide to all things amazing. My love for and dedication to you only grows.
I love everything Mashable, so when I found out about their new social media awards, I was intrigued. Here’s the info and I will be following it and updating you as it goes.
Mashable’s Open Web Awards: Social Media Edition
Over 30,000 nominations have been placed thus far, don’t forget to have your say.
After hearing the raving reviews from my friends who finally upgraded this week, I downloaded the new BBM 5.0 to my Curve 8900 with less than stellar results.
As a huge fan of aesthetics, I was pleased by the new design. Unfortunately, it didn’t go much further than the design: my texts stopped coming through and my contacts’ pictures never uploaded.
After contacting Rogers support about it, they fixed the text messaging but the BBM, I learned, was not going to be as easy. The upgrade is RIM supported and not Rogers supported, it has a lot of bugs, and to figure it out was going to be a huge inconvenience to me.
My options were as follows:
1. Manually reload each contact (I have over 100)
2. Manually link each contact to their address book entry (I tried one and it didn’t solve the problem)
3. Downgrade back to the last 4.7 version of BBM
That doesn’t sound like very helpful advice, the situation outlook isn’t promising, and its as though its on me to find the solution. Thanks, Rogers. The worst part is that at the end of the conversation the Rogers support guys asked, “anything else I can help you with today?” umm.. how about fix my BBM?
I’m currently still running BBM 5.0 and have found plenty of online talk about the bugs.
All I have to say is Blackberry Fail.
What has been your experience with BBM 5.0? Any solutions that might be more useful?
I love Twitter; However, having just started habitually checking the trending topics I began to wonder how these so-called trends never made a dent in my communities’ conversations. Then it happened – between coffee number three and my mid afternoon daydream – everyone began talking about also wanting to get stuck in a hot air balloon that would take us far, far away from this (suddenly freezing) city.
Soon the six-year-old boy who launched himself into the clouds became the trending topic #saveballoonboy and #balloonboy. Unfortunately, as soon as I heard his name was in fact Falcon (#namefail) and his family adores the spotlight, I smelt #Hoax and was #OverIt.
However, the day’s hashtagged topics were hilarious and worth mentioning. Today’s top trending rivals were Anne Frank and Balloon Boy, and everyone began tweeting “Balloon boy, Ima let you finish – but Anne Frank had one of the best attic hideouts of all time.”
Speaking of sad hoaxes, the amber alert that’s been going around? #Hoax. Oh, and can everyone please stop falling for phishing scams? While we’re at it, lets make a pact: as soon as something screams #Hoax, lets just ignore it as though it were an ADHD ridden child… The kind who hasn’t been shown any boundaries, given any hugs, or been taught consequences for actions (the worst kind). Thanks.
Brazilian Sub-Pop group Cansei de Ser Sexy(CSS) just released their new album Donkey. It is more refined and pop-ish than their last album, a self-titled raw and artistic masterpiece. Their overall sound, however, remains the same: pop art, Warhol, turned into music. Bright, brilliant and genuinely different.
I first heard of this group last summer, rocking out to Lets Make Love and Listen to Death From Above. They were one of the first bands which lured me into the Indie Electro scene. Soon, Music is My Hot, Hot Sex played back up to an Ipod commercial and the whole world had discovered my little secret known as CSS. Life was ruined.
Top tracks off Donkey are as follows:
Believe Achieve
Jagger Yoga
Top tracks off CSS:
Lets Make Love and Listen To Death From Above
Alala
Music Is My Hot, Hot Sex
Revived
Best of Radiohead was released last month and I was excited to get more from the creators of Creep. I must preceed the next statement with a reminder that I’m an ‘86er so you must forgive me, but I actually didn’t realize how many songs I love were created by this band. Kind of like Theory of a Deadman, you think you have never heard of them but you can sing along to all their songs (*ah-hem* rethink your PR).
In addition to all the songs I already loved, I have found new favourite tracks from this time capsule.
There have been so many great remixes and reconstructions of Radiohead tracks also worth mentioning. I remember first hearing Everything In Its Right Place on a CD about 4 years ago – it was the opening song to a set preformed by Paul Oakenfold. I also can’t forget to mention Mark Ronson’s rendition of Just on the album Versions. Mark Ronson is a music god.
Others worth checking out
Crookers. They are seriously building up in popularity and I’m hearing their name more and more often.
Santogold. Check out their songs L.E.S. Artistes and Creator
Black Kids and Lykke Li
Los Campesinos! I’m still trying to appreciate them.. cool sound, not my type but they are worth checking out.
The dynamic duo known as Chromeo were just in Toronto this past weekend for the music event “Rogers Picnic” and followed with a special set at Social. I witnessed this MTL/NYC group first-hand at Shared Lofts a few months ago, and their awesomely cool parties show that these two guys are wildly growing in popularity within Toronto.
The Electrofunk music they create is unique, sexy and utterly addictive. Their DJing is a beautiful accompaniment to their musical creations and highlights their insanely gifted ear for cutting-edge sounds.
Their 2007 album Fancy Footwork shares the name of one of the best tracks on it. This hugely popular song boasts a funky fresh beat and lyrics that are hilariously awesome: “But if you let her see that fancy footwork, show her that you’re not that shy. Let her see that fancy footwork, show her you’re that type of guy.”
Think you haven’t heard it? try the Thomas Barfod remix, every club (worth being in) is spinning it.
Tenderoni – (Noun) ten*der*o*ni – an object of desire that happens to be too young: think Lolita or Jail Bait. It is also a fresh, young and tight song by Chromeo, of course.
Tenderoni is today’s equivalent of what Micheal Jackson’s PYT (Pretty Young Thing) once was. If the catchy beats don’t sell that idea, then the lyrics will. “Tenderoni” is actually used in MJ’s PYT lyrics, as follows:
Where Did You Come From Lady And Ooh Won’t You Take Me There?
Right Away, Won’t You Baby? Tendoroni You’ve Got To Be.
Spark My Nature, Sugar Fly With Me
Artists worth checking out if you love Chromeo are as follows:
The Age Of The Understatement by The Last Shadow Puppets
“Affection to rent the age of the understatement
Before this attraction ferments
Kiss me properly and pull me apart”
Decided
To sneak up away from your stomach
And try your pulse
And captured
What seemed all unknowing and candid
But they suspected it was false
She’s playful
The boring would warn you be careful
Of her brigade
In order to tame this relentless marauder
Move away from the parade
And she was walking on the tables in the glass house, Endearingly bedraggled in the wind
Subtle in her method of seduction. The twenty little tragedies begin
And she would throw a feather boa in the road If she thought that it would set the scene
Unfittingly dipped into your companions Enlighten them to make you see
And there’s affection to rent
The age of the understatement
Before the attraction ferments
Kiss me properly and pull me apart
Affection to rent the age of the understatement
Before this attraction ferments
Kiss me properly and pull me apart
And my fingers scratch at my hair Before my mind can get too reckless
The idea of seeing you here Is enough to make the sweat grow cold
My favorite bands and songs of the week are a mish-mash of rock, alternative and old fashioned “indie.”
If you were a shape, what shape would you be? Me and My Friend John by The fratellis off the album Here We Stand. It is a sexy guitar riff with some yelling, catchy vocals: perfect for any party this summer. The “ahhh..ahh..ahh..’s” will have you singing along like no other.
The Last Shadow Puppets, The Age Of Understatement. The song by the same name as the album is a favourite along with the song My Mistakes Were Made For You. The songs have a subtle nostalgia to them as they remind me of a sound I have heard in a past life. The sound haunts you and takes over your your senses: back to another time, another life. Perfection.
“Lets Stay Friends” is easier said than done. Les Savy Fav make it sound effortless with their album by the same name. My favourite songs off the album are What Would Wolves Do and Kiss Kiss Is Getting Old. The latter offering a very interesting sound I would best describe as a full-pouted yet vacant voice in the verses, meet American rock (dare I say, Foo Fighters) in the chorus.
New York is offering Bishop Allen’s Folk yet upbeat sound of Rain. Think of it as the male version of Tegan and Sarah, yeah – that good. You’ll fall in love, I promise.
And of course, Bitches In Tokyo by the Stars. I really didn’t like this song the first couple of times I heard it. May be because my friend is in Tokyo modelling and hating the actual bitches in Tokyo. It grows on you. The Stars know what they’re doing with this song. Hopefully the radio won’t ruin it like it does everything else.. the way advertising does.
My favourite of the week must be Edu K- if bjork, Bonde De Role and Shinjuku Zulu had an audio baby, it would be Me Bota Pra Dancar. Spicy, loud, exotic, and with bass to knock you on to the dance floor. Its the kind of beauty you only see from the rarest of mixes. Best track of the week.
The perfect lounge playlist is essential for everyone’s music libraries because it is the only music that really sets the stage for drama and romance in fiercely chic way. This playlist is golden for dinners, cocktail parties, pre-drinks and post-drinks, and any other sexy situations you may find yourself in. The sound ranges in genres from electronic to jazz; but to me, its all lounge.
It also varies by tepos: the slower ones are better suited for winding down, the faster tempos are for getting a party started. I have multiple lounge playlists arranged by tempo to suite every situation perfectly.
Just brought someone home at the end of the night? Bitter:sweet. Girlfriends dropped in for pre-party cocktails? Hotel costes. Dinner party? Jazz and 90s/80s.
The best Lounge CD series that make a perfect start to a playlist are as follows:
Hotel Costes (i – x)
Buddha Bar (i – x)
Jazz and (80s and 90s)
Om series (mixes, various locations)
Verve Remixes (i – iii)
The best artists for a slower tempo are as follows:
Bitter:Sweet
Goldfrapp
John Legend
Nouvelle Vague
Telepopmusik
Portishead
Massive Attack
Air
Gotan Project
Trentmoller
Best Artists for a faster-paced lounge are as follows:
Kaskade
Stephane Pompougnac
Mark Farina
Parov Stelar
Blue Six
Amy Winehouse
Fiest
Soulstice
And finally, my favourite lounge songs of all time are as follows:
Koop Island Blues – Koop
Dream Machine – Mark Farina (Downtempo Mix)
All I Want – Jehro
Its You Its Me – Kaskade
Les Djinns (Trentmoller Remix) – Djuma Soundsystem
Sous La Soleil (Cuba Acoustic Mix) – Major Boys
Cleopatra in New York – Nickodemus (zim zam mix)
As The Day Breaks – Carmen Rizzo
Everything is Alright – Four Tet
Where Do I Begin (Away Team Mix) – Shirley Bassey
Diferente – Gotan Project
Loneliness (chill mix) – Blank & Jones
Metropolitan – Emmanuel Santarronama
Juice – Buddha Sounds CD
Faking The Books – Lali Puna
Paper Aeroplanes – Angus & Julia Stone
(This is Not) A Love Song – Nouvelle Vague
Our Remains – Bitter:Sweet
Adios – Zimpala
Show Me – John Legend
I’ll stop myself at 20, but let me know if there are any vital lounge tracks on your list that make your top 20 and I missed. If there is one thing I urge you to do, it is to give all of these a quick listen. You may like them all, you may like some, you may like none – but you will open yourself up to new music, which really is the greatest gift of all.
Gen-Yer approaching my Quarter Life Crisis while embracing the role of Social Media Specialist for a tech company called SoftCom. Join me as I learn and grow - sharing the good, bad and glamorous.
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