Tunes Tuesday: Rod McKuen - I Looked At You A Long Time

It's actually Wednesday, shhh. But it's been a while and I have stuff on my mind, so I thought I'd stop here and dump another song off. Don't mind me.

In case you couldn't tell from my last post, I've been in an introspective mood lately. That's probably a bit stupid, but eh, I can't help it. I found myself thinking about a former lover from long ago (what do you call someone you were in a serious relationship with but not married to?) Not in a "I miss you" way, more in "I wonder whatever happened to that crazy so-and-so" way. And also in a "boy, I sure don't want to experience any of the stupid shit that happened in that relationship again" way. Let us all learn from the past and go on to have nice, uncomplicated lives.

And now for the song of the day: Rod McKuen - I Looked At You A Long Time (1970).


This song reminds me of that relationship. Partially because I remember listening to this record together once, but also because the sentiment reminds me of my ex-whatever. He didn't steal my Sunday paper, but he did steal some of my cutlery. True story. Not that that's what the song is really about—but I do find myself sometimes thinking about him when I shave (my legs, anyway). I could say more on the subject, but it's probably best left in the past. Just like that cutlery, whosever drawer it ended up in.

Tunes Tuesday: Lipseye - Don't Worry

I've been having a weird couple of weeks. Sometimes I go through phases where I wonder if I'm really putting my effort and energy into the right things—not that that's especially weird, I guess. I think most people probably experience those sorts of feelings at one point or another, but it's been hitting me extra-hard lately. I don't want to get into too many specifics about my personal life on this blog, but right now I'm earning a big chunk of my livelihood from writing, and when your creative mojo and ability to support yourself get conflated, it can feel... taxing. Someone once told me that the thing you spend the most time daydreaming about should be the thing you end up doing for a living, but churning out banal crap out of obligation is not exactly what I dreamed about way back when. That said, it's not all bad... so should I stay the course? Quit? Or find a new hobby to obsess over? I think I'll spend the day wallowing in bed while I try to decide.

The last time I felt like this was shortly after I completed grad school. I finished with good marks, but felt strangely regretful about the experience—missed opportunities and all that. The kinds of things that only students who are delaying the inevitable reality of WORK can do. Oh well—it was too late then, and it sure as hell is too late now. For those things, anyway. But what about now? What am I doing (or not doing) today that I will regret tomorrow?

OK, enough maudlin shit. Today's song is Lipseye- Don't Worry, a relatively unknown Italo Disco/ballad track from 1986 I came across during that period of post-grad woe I just described. I found it strangely uplifting at the time—galloping synth base + delicate pianos + a whole bunch of other synth sounds + constant changes might not soothe all souls, but it did mine. Also, I don't want to say outright where I was living at the time, but there were many seabirds flying around, so even the odd, shoddily-constructed jacket art spoke to me. What the hell is wrong with me? Maybe nothing. Listen and decide for yourself.


Don't worry, we'll live for... a brand new day....

Tunes Tuesday: 소호대 (SOHODAE) - 사랑 그리고 추억 (Love & Memories)

So... I guess that whole posting more than once per month thing didn't exactly work out. Oh life, you tricky little time-suck of a thing.

The song of the week is SOHODAE - 사랑 그리고 추억/Love & Memories (1999). Full disclosure: I was a high school student in 1999, but not in Korea. And I didn't hear this song for the first time until much, much later. It still manages to have a bit of a nostalgic vibe for me though—over-the-top dance beats mixed with winsome-sounding vocals that are actually sort of sad get me every time. It's exactly what I hated about pop music at the time, but love now that I'm older and maybe wishing a little bit that I was younger. OH LIFE, YOU TRICKY LITTLE TIME-SUCK OF A THING.


Just like love and memories? Whoa, I just blew my own mind a little bit there.

Tunes Tuesday: Mandy vs. Brandy

Happy Tuesday! And it's actually Tuesday this time. I win!

For whatever reason, "Mandy" (as performed by Barry Manilow) has been stuck in my head all week, so it seems logical to appoint it as the tune of the week. It might be cheesy, but it has sort of a timeless quality that a lot of 40-year-old love songs don't.


Barry Manilow - Mandy (1974)


Fun fact: Did you know that the original version of "Mandy" was called "Brandy" and recorded by Scott English in 1971? Most of the lyrics are the same, but the Scott English version sounds more dated somehow. I dunno, maybe Barry Manilow just has that wistful thing down pat. Here, you can listen and judge for yourself.


Scott English - Brandy (1971)


So, who stole your heart? Mandy or Brandy?

Tunes Tuesday: Peppertones (페퍼톤스) - For All Dancers

So... um... hi. It's been an absurdly long time since I updated this pitiful excuse for a blog. I had all these grand plans for everything from television to film to even game reviews, but life got in the way. Oops! Let's try this again, shall we?

The song of the week is Peppertones - For All Dancers from 2012. This song has been stuck in my head because I watched some old episodes of 1박 2일 on YouTube recently, and the first 30 seconds or so of it seems to pop up about every three episodes. Which is a little annoying, because it's a catchy little tune. But that's the beauty of the age we live in—you can listen to the whole thing right here, right now on the internet. Whoosh!


On a semi-related note, YouTube/Google now has something called "Music Key", which allows you to listen to music in the background on your mobile device and without ads. Kind of like Spotify. It's currently in beta—I got a pop-up offering me early access on my YouTube account, but I don't think it's been rolled out to everybody yet, so YMMV. More info here if you're curious though.

And with that, I vow to update this blog more than once per year. Yeah!!!