Remember Alisha's Attic?

Because it's Labor Day here in the Philippines, why dont we have an Alisha's Attic appreciation night. I know it doesnt make any sense but what the heck, I'm posting it anyway.

Alisha's Attic was one of my definition of 'cool' when I was young. They're cool kasi they dont smile a lot, they dressed nicely, loved their looks, their hair and they sounded different.

They were pretty scary like goth girls but in colors. I wasn't really a big fan but I liked their songs. Especially this...

and...

hmmmm this post makes me wanna dye my hair again.

Bubble bubble pop pop

Happy Friday, you guys! I have these awesome two tracks here that will surely make your Black Friday all bright and rainbows!

Let's start with London and Hong Kong-based indiepop outfit Edine collaborating with Lisle Mitnik forming EDINE AVEC LISLE MITNIK ET SON ORCHESTRE. Check out their twee-as-fuck single The West Coast which you can pre-order here.


I found this remix of Curve's Horror Head by duo Mint Julep which gives the 90's shoegaze classic a modern spin making it more ear-jeezing.

Here's the original version of Horror Head. It doesnt really have that much of a change. Just more lush i guess.

The Cardigans, I Miss U!!!

Did a little spinning at TODAYxFuture in CubaoX last Wednesday for the Strict Rules of Polite Society night and felt totally nostalgic when I played The Cardigans' Black Letter Day. The Cardigans was my first taste of "indie-pop" band when I was discovering music other than the Spice Girls in grade school. I didnt even know that their sound was called twee/indie-pop until I discovered the whole scene when I was in senior high. This song made them popular in 1996...

Lovefool was the first single from their album First Band on the Moon and it was used as the official soundtrack of Baz Luhrmann's Romeo+Juliet. It was the only song that I knew from The Cardigans until they got featured on Jude Rocha's show where they play music videos from a certain band/artist's videography. It was then I first saw/heard my future favorite song Rise & Shine...

This track was part of their debut album Emmerdale.

And Sick & Tired

also this track called Celia Inside... awwww super love

On the same show, they also played Carnival...

from their album Life.

Also in this album is one of my favorites Daddy's Car. It's such a nice track for road trips. Well, because it's about road trip...around the world. hehe

Their albums were well received in their home country Sweden and some parts of the world especially in Japan and were starting to have some followings in the US. Then they got a record deal under Mercury Records in the States, released their third album First Band on the Moon...

 Released Lovefool, performed on the original Beverly Hills 90210

covered Black Sabbath's Iron Man and became an instant hit!

After a few years of hiatus, they came back with a new album and a new sound which was far from their usual twee. Gran Turismo was released.

Fans were shocked with the drastic change of The Cardigans' music. It was edgier and more rock oriented with a little bit of electronic. And on the video of the first single My Favorite Game, we see Nina Perrson wearing too much raccoon makeup while driving violently on a freeway.

This was not The Cardigans that I loved but I learned to like their new sound. Erase/Rewind was an awesome song...

Then, another album was released. This time, it's quieter than its predecessor.

The mood of Long Gone Before Daylight was very singer/songwritter folk-pop type. And as a fan, again, I learned to love it. How could you not like Nina's boho look and her long, black hair?

and one of my faves on this album is this track called And Then You Kissed Me. *swoooon*

Another album was released but it didnt get that much of attention...

but i super love the carrier track of this album and its title- I Need Some Fine Wine and You, You Need To Be Nicer. It's kinda naughty, no?

Ok, so this is pretty much getting longer and longer. All I wanna say is I really miss this band and i am still hoping for some new materials from them. Or at least a tour here in Manila pleeeeezzz!

#nowplaying

I tend to abuse the repeat button on my iTunes every time I discover awesome tracks. And when I say abuse I mean total exploitation! I could be in death penalty if song abuse is a crime. Anyway, here are the "abused" ones and hope you like em too :p

Alpaca Sports - Just for Fun

Swedish musician Andreas Jonsson just released his debut single under the moniker Alpaca Sports and hell yeah this guy knows how to have fun. In making music that is. Totally digging the summery vibe of this song. I'm actually making my second summer mixtape (hope i can post it soon) because of this track! BTW, the cover art for his single is made by the Japanese artist Ray Kimura. Thanks for sending this, Andeas!

AUDIO

POP ETC. - Halfway to Heaven

First time I heard this song I was like "Is this Another Level?" It has 90's all over it and I like it!!!! POP ETC is the same guys from the band The Morning Benders who decided to change their name because, apparently, the word ‘bender’ in the UK and many parts of Europe is a slang term for ‘homosexual' or equivalent of ‘The Morning Fags’ in America. Their official statement says,  We simply cannot go on using a name that is demeaning to the gay community. The reason we are making music is to reach and unite as many different kinds of people as possible, and the idea that our name may be hateful towards anyone makes us sick. How can you not admire these guys? Sending my brotherly love and kisses to Chris Chu! :p

Beta Frontiers - Hondo feat. Becky Ninkovic (You Say Party!)

From 90's now to 80's! I love how music nowadays can sound like it's from a different era and stay current at the same time. Toronto-based Beta Frontiers knows exactly how to do it. Their debut EP '....' will be released April 7.

Cup Noodle Song

So I was craving for some hot sodium soup in a cup a while ago aka cup noodles and then I remembered this song from the 90's by Swedish band Pineforest Crunch! Happy jangly Sunday! 

Blur @ Brits!!!

And then my longing for everything 90's continues while watching Blur's five-song set at the Brit awards last night. They were given the Outstanding Contribution To Music award and they ended the show with the longest show-closer ever in the history of Brits!

They opened their set with one of my fave Blur songs Boys & Girls and then Song 2! And then comedian Phil Daniels joined the guys for Parklife.

Blur performed Tender with a 32-piece gospel choir and then ending their set with This is a Low. Perfection!

And this melts my heart when Noel Gallagher and Damon Albarn hugged during the awards.

It's my dream to watch Blur live and I hope Ovation Productions bring these guys here sooner or in 10 years time. haha

GUESS WHO'S BACK: Anggun

I am sure every 90's kids know who Anggun is. If you dont, this song should refresh your memory...


Yes, she's the Indonesian singer who made it snow on the Sahara...in her song at least. I remember playing my cassette tape of her album while imitating her hand moves. haha! I also saw her short gig at SM Megamall when she had her promo tour here in Manila. Check this link to watch her performance on Eat Bulaga! haha

She might have disappeared in our airwaves but she's still pretty big in France. Anggun will be releasing her 9th English/French album Echoes this September and she just released a single called Only Love and I kind of like it. Watch the video below.

Aside from Spice Girls...

Being a 90's kid, Icould not avoid to listen to boybands, girlbands, bubble gum pop and all those in between. I was a major fan of Spice Girls. There I said. I thought they were the coolest! I thought belting out Spice Up Your Life would make me hip and all that. We even had a Spice Girls clique in our gradeschool where you had to be a die hard fan of the Fab 5 to be a member. But aside from Spice Girls, i also listened to other music outside the "pop" category...secretly. I never told my friends that I listened to Blur and Silverchair coz they might think that I was baduy and worst, they'd expel me from the Spice Barkada hahahah...

So here's a list of, at least, some of the artists/bands that I secretly loved during the Spice Girls era. I know these acts weren't the super cool ones in those years but they weren't that mainstream either.

First up is Bitter by Jill Sobule. The only meaning of 'bitter' that I knew when I was in grade school was the taste of Amplaya. I didnt know I'd embody that word when I grow up.



Next one is Summertime by The Sundays. I didn't know that the genre of The Sundays was indie-pop. I didn't even know that that genre exists.


Alisha's Attic was also a major fave especially this song. I remember waiting for this song to be played in the old 99.5 RT because they were the only radio station that played it. I love these twins because they always wore dresses and they looked like colorful vampires with their make-up.


How can I forget Lucious Jackson's Ladyfingers?! This video was always aired in Video Hit Parade! Haha! Everytime I rode a bus, I'd do their swaying side-by-side choreography especially when I'm at the back. And up until now, I don't know the right lyrics of the chorus of the song. I'd still sing as 'I got ladyfingers baby, got kid gloves baby i got HARD. I got HARD.' That didn't sound right, no? (BTW, look for Cibo Matto if you can spot them.)


I wanted to have a nose ring because of Kelli from Sneaker Pimps. 6 Underground was so hot in MTV Asia Hitlist back then. I remember watching the movie The Saint just to hear this song.


Perhaps this is the most pop of all the videos in this post. Jellyhead by Crush is such a fun song. This video was also on heavy rotation in Video Hit Parade.


I wanted to include Moonpools & Catterpillar, The Cardigans, Garbage, No Doubt, Portishead and Massive Attack but they're always on the list of everyone's 90's fave so I chose the ones that were less popular but still have pop sensibilities. I will end this list with Republica's Ready to Go.

BLAST FROM THE PAST: Your Woman by White Town

I've been searching for the title and the band name of this particular track for ages and all i had to do was type 'black & white music video from the 90s' in google and voila! yahoo answered. What do you know? someone, some where from the far side of the earth, was asking the same question as mine. Internet, sometimes, amazes me.

This track was released in 1996 by the band White Town. I dunno if they had another song but most definitely this one was their  best. I love the infectious intro and the Truffaut-esque music video. The lyrics are just ambiguous. Hmm...