The perfect video and maybe the perfect voice for what I have been feeling in this round of grief. You all know that I do not normally go for the female voice. I think that is because it is rare that a woman in the music world (after 1978) has much to say to me. Madonna tries to hard to sound deep amd mystical while she is dancing on the surface of any topic. And the rest of them are just a bunch of party girls who are trying to elevate drunken disorderliness to a level of perfection reserved for saints and nobel prize winners. PeWerner, Adele and Lana Del Ray would be notable exceptions in Europe and Norah Jones is the exception here. Oh, and sometimes Cindi Lauper; Time After Time kills me when I here it becausse there is always someone that I miss when I hear it. But she is the first lady of PartyTown Rockers. However... I can still only take a woman's voice in small doses.
So it should be as much a surprise to you as it is to me that I am actually going to review a female performing artist. Right after I tell you how I found her and what kinda geek I really am. Single, having lost Sir Knight and finding myself outside of previous circles I need to rebuild my life's support systems. Of course it wouldn't hurt to have a good guy friend to She-Bop with... so off again to the dating websites. And to one I have not tried before. ACG (A Chicago Guy- haven't mentioned him in a while so I thought I would remind all ya all who he is) told me about a site he was having luck with. So I thought I would give it a try.
With more honesty that ever before, I filled out a profile that I could have sworn was going to chase away anyone of potential. But no. I found so many good matches in a high percentage bracket. Whoo hoo! I spent two days reading through the profiles of everyone who scored a high match. And I mean read; finally, I found guys who wrote books about themselves. No cheesey come-ons. No one liners that Fonzie used... that only Fonzie could have used. No overly rehearsed and overly used mantras about how perfect they are for the any woman. No words about flowers, chocoates and promises they don't intend to keep*... men who actually were able to fill out their information honestly. And there was a trend that I decided to pay attention to this morning when I happened across a music review on Wordpress.
Six men mentioned this woman on their list of favorite recording artists. Geeks, meet Regina Spektor. Straight outta Moscow and living in New York City, this woman is amazing. The review listed several songs. It was not until I listened to "Eet" that I really tuned in. She does sound like Adele with that breathy staccato. And there is a little Lana DelRay in her tone. But it is the lyricism that really brought me on board. "all the Rowboats" takes on a sci-fi fantasy inquery along the lines of the late greats Ray Bradbury & Kurt Vonnegut. It is empathic. Anthropomorphic. And something that reminded me of my 12 year old self that felt pathos when thinking of museums instead of awe and inspiration. Don't get me wrong... glad we can all see these great works. But I always thought it was a little sad to trap those things that could come to life under the right circumstances. And obviously with the success of "Night at hte Museum" I wasn't the only kid hoping the paintings would come to life. But... I digress.
The video for "eet" shows a key on a keyboard with some other musical notations and I wondered, how have I not heard of "eet"? So I did some research. She totally made it up. It was these two songs, Rowboats and "eet" that have me hooked. No, I do not think that she will replace Matthias Reim or Sting. Honestly, no one could. But she does sum me up quite well:
"And I am crying for things that I tell others to do without crying"
And you know what I find most interesting about the fact that these men like Regina Spektor? It shows me that some of my skepticism about the depth of a man's soul might be a bit unfounded. The fact that I have found the most shallow of them is not proof that they are all shallow. And what it does prove is that I may actually have to go to Europe to find what I am looking for. Other than one dear friend here and having found an old friend, this new site has not turned up anything local other than two really good people to talk to. But you know what? For right now that is all I should hope for. I hurt. My belief in fairytales is subparr to the hope that I have that Romance is not dead, having bled out in a dark alley when no one was looking. So for a while I will talk, share and learn how to open my thoughts and hopes again. In the Someday in the Future it will be time to look for that long term relationship.
Until then there is music to heal and music to share. And let's be honest, other than music, there is only food to level the playing feilds of culture and gender. The best way to get to know someone is to share their food and their music. Both are doorways to the soul.
http://www.youtube.comyoutube/user/ReginaSpektor?feature=watch this is the youtube channel. Since she has uploaded these, you an be certian they will not disappear from the playlists that you make.
http://youtu.be/2CZ8ossU4pc
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