HYPNOTIZED | yanis

The story: I accidentally came across this track on Spotify while searching for something else. However, I am so glad this beautiful accident happened. "Hypnotized" by Yanis is amazing! It is such an eargasm.

Yanis is an up-and-coming artist from Paris. I fell in love with the track at first listen. I could not stop listening to it all weekend. I even woke up one morning with it playing in my head.

Then, I watched the video. The video shows Yanis and dancers dancing under hypnosis. Let go of your inhibitions and let the music move you.

Now, click play below and watch the music video for his debut track. Enjoy.

ORIGINAL BEAST | grace jones

Who says Mondays have to be boring? Today, marks the release of the highly-anticipated soundtrack for The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Pt. 1. That's enough excitement to get us through the week. So, let us rejoice in all the new good music entering our ears and moving our bodies. 

Grace Jones delivers tribal beats on "Original Beast." I don't know about you guys, but this song transports me back to Coachella earlier this year and experiencing The Knife live. I am definitely feeling The Knife vibes on this track by Grace Jones, and am loving every second of it. All I need is my Coachella Tribe, and we can party our asses off to this song as if we were back in the desert. 

"I'm a different animal

Different kind of animal"

Let Grace Jones give you something to dance to. I wonder where in the film is this song playing? Perhaps as they're training for battle or in combat? I'm very excited to see how the movie and music marry? 

After listening to the soundtrack all day, I must say: thank you, Lorde. You have certainly compiled some great talent together and produced something beautiful. 

LOSING MY MIND | kiesza

After delivering the upbeat tracks "Hideaway" and "Giant in my Head," Canadian singer-songwriter Kiesza goes slow for her new song "Losing My Mind." Just as she is able to make me jump off my seat and dance with her 90s house-influence music, she can also make me sway to her 90s hip-hip-infused slow-jam. 

-/-/-/-
"I won't quit till you're touching me

And you're sending my body to grace"
 -/-/-/-

I can already see my guy and I grooving to this song in the kitchen while preparing dinner. The track is too good not to groove to with a partner - hips to hips, staring into each other's eyes, and letting the beat move you. Or is that just me? 

Take a listen, and let me know what you think.

Her debut album "Sound of a Woman" comes out next week. You can pre-order it on itunes now. You already know I am. :-)

happy humpday | the knife releases shaken up versions

One of my favorite sets from this year's Coachella was undeniably The Knife, the Swedish electronic music brother-sister duo.

You are probably familiar with them partly or mostly because of their most mainstream song "Heartbeats" :

However, don't be mistaken in believing that all their material sounds like "Heartbeats." 

Their sound is constantly mutating, evolving, and becoming something else. Something ahead of their time. And always original. 

Just take a look below at their live rendition of their song "We share our mother's health." There is feminist talk about dicks and pussy (#pussypower), hand-clapping in unison, screeching, and theater at work here. Their energy and performance has a kind of magic that is quite beautiful.

Just try explaining that. It's challenging. One must experience The Knife.

Here's "One Hit:"



The finger snapping, the costumes, the make-up, the choreography, the politics of it all. Listen. Watch. Enjoy. Take it in. Take it all in. It's more than mere performance. The Knife's electricity manages to tap into something very human in us all - reminding us of our tribal beginnings and the modern ruling of social constructs.

Given the experience that The Knife gave us at Coachella, I wanted to relive it again and again upon my return to civilization. However, the studio versions of their songs were not the same. They lacked the hand-clapping, the screeching, and other minor yet significant differences found in their live performance.

Fortunately, yesterday, The Knife released Shaken Up Versions, a mini album of their classic tracks reworked especially for the band's North American tour. Thank you, The Knife. Thank you, mighty music gods. Of course, I immediately bought it. Now, I get to relive them and their magic. I'm one happy camper - one happy Coachella camper, to be precise. :-)


* Disclaimer: Videos uploaded to the post are not mine. I found them on Youtube. I would like to thank the users who uploaded them to be viewed with everyone online. At the time of The Knife's performance, I was too captivated by them to do anything else. :-)

spotify playlist // marching forward

Here's the first playlist for the blog. Hope y'all enjoy it.

Comment to let me know which songs are your favorites.