Round 4

Tonight sees the last of the Melodifestivalen semi-finals prior to the second chance round.

My votes for tonight go to the rather wonderful, Village People-esque After Dark – Åh, när ni tar saken i egna händer. My swedish spekaing sources tell me that the title is pun ridden (“Åh, När Ni…” sounds like “Onani” which is Swedish for wanking…. the full song title meaning “Oh, When We Take Things In Our Own Hands”... ). Wonderful.

MP3: Magnus Uggla – För kung och fosterland
MP3: Emile Azar – Vi hade nåt
MP3: Sanna Nielsen – Vågar du, vågar jag
MP3: Caroline af Ugglas – Tror på dig
MP3: After Dark – Åh, när ni tar saken i egna händer
MP3: Sarah Dawn – Finer I Remember Love
MP3: Verona – La musica
MP3: Andreas Johnson – A Little Bit Of Love

...And He Wouldn't Give Me His Number

This year, February has been a strange month for me; I’ve been walking around feeling like something is either very wrong with me or the universe, or at times both. I’ve been feeling overly emotional – spending way too much time watching soppy films and Grey’s Anatomy. Basically, I’ve turned into a 15 year old girl (and I’m about as competent as one at work, which is an issue in itself).

One of things that has recently made me go a bit funny has been my reaction to one night stands. Now, don’t get me wrong – I’ve probably had casual encounters with more men than are detailed in the Bible (old and new testament), but interestingly, very few of them have been one night stands – I seem to have an aversion to actually spending the night with someone. This weekend, I ended up having one (go me!) and it’s completely thrown me – I don’t know how to go from being intimate with someone (sleeping, kissing, touching) to not having anything to do with them again. Having casual sex is easy; but casual intimacy, and I’m like a teenager all over again. I think it has to do with how intimacy can foster hope – hope of a future, of potential, of more intimacy – and I clearly crave intimacy (sometimes you just want to be held).

It’s odd that something so liberating about the gay scene (casual sex with no social repurcussions in the same way for example that a straight woman would face – even in this age of Sex & The City) can feel like suffocating.

So here I am, trying to figure out how to re-encounter a one night stand...interestingly on the first year that I have ever made a Valentine's 'mixed tape' - I think the gods are warning me against emotions.

Don't worry - this hasn't turned into Oprah - there are a couple of related MP3s down below :-)

MP3: Eric Himan - One Night Stands (expired)
MP3: Blow - Hey Boy (expired)

Round 3

Tonight sees the 3rd round of the Melodifestivalen to choose the Sweden's entry into the Eurovision. For my money, Magnus Carlsson and Måns Zelmerlöw are the front runners for this round.

MP3: Måns Zelmerlöw – Cara Mia (expired)
MP3: MissMatch – Drop Dead (expired)
MP3: Magnus Carlsson – Live Forever (expired)
MP3: Shieda- I mina drömmar (expired)
MP3: The Attic featuring Therese – The Arrival (expired)
MP3: Sebastian Karlsson – When The Night Comes Falling (expired)
MP3: Sonja Aldén - För att du finns (expired)
MP3: Nanne Grönvall – Jag Måste Kyssa Dig (expired)

My Funny Valentine

Ok, I know this post is late, but I've never been a terribly great time keeper (as anyone who has ever arranged to meet me would be able to attest to). Valentine’s day has come and gone, and to celebrate, I created a mixed CD (yes, beneath this cold, hard exterior lies a cheesy sentimental interior).

Now I know there are more than enough lovely-dovey compilations around, so in an attempt to do something different (and because I'm single and bitter (or bitterly single - feel free to ask me out on a date tho), I thought I'd throw in some break up songs in as well. But, that's not the twist..oh no...the compilation features songs only by gay/bi men. Yes, it's a veritable fruitbowl of loved up and loved out songs.

Don't let the sexuality of the artists concerned put you off - even the most hardened (ooh er) heterosexual should find something of interest (although you won't hear the miltant propoganda encoded into each track ;-)

Anyway, ladies and gents, I give you For The Love Of Men: Homoeclectic Valentine Mix 2007.

MP3: Richard Cortez – Craving Something Beautiful (expired)
MP3: Mark Weigle – Cody (expired)
MP3: Rufus Wainwright – One Man Guy (expired)
MP3: Skott Freedman Feat. Mark Weigle – Papa Was A Rodeo (expired)
MP3: Andrew Spice – Beautiful Creatures (expired)
MP3: Steven Franz – Inside My Head (expired)
MP3: Gentleman Reg – The Boyfriend Song (expired)
MP3: Skott Freedman – Hole In His Soul (expired)
MP3: Jimmy Somerville – Because Of Him (expired)
MP3: Gregory Douglass – Upside Down (expired)
MP3: Ennio – Hey, Jesus (expired)
MP3: Hidden Cameras – Man That I Am With My Man (expired)
MP3: Matthew Brookshire – Better (expired)
MP3: Antony & The Johnsons - Fistful of Love (expired)
MP3: Freddy Freeman – Echo (expired)
MP3: Dylan Rice – The Lie (expired)
MP3: Dennis Hensley – The Last Time (expired)
MP3: Stephin Merritt – All I Want To Know (expired)
MP3: Christopher Dallman – Green Camaro (expired)
MP3: Jay Brannan – Half-Boyfriend (expired)

Not Possessed

I've just spent the last hour or so listening to the new (self-titled) album from Brett Anderson, and I'm sorry to say it's a bit of a mixed bag - there are a couple of tracks in addition to the rather wonderful Love Is Dead that got me hitting repeat button (e.g. The More We Possess The Less We Own Of Ourselves), but about half the album just didn’t gel with me. I’m kinda disappointed as I loved the two Brett featured tracks posted earlier.

Have a listen if you can hold of an advance copy and let me know if I need to give it another go.

I’m not going to post any more MP3s from the album, as a negative review is likely to end up with a ‘cease and desist’, so I’ll share the latest single from the rather gorgeous Feist. (It’s Slinky discotastic.)

MP3: Feist - My Man My Moon (expired)

More Swede

Säkert! is the band put together by Annika Norlin aka Hello Saferide. Joining her are members of Vapnet, Laakso and Isolation Years. Whilst I have no idea what the band are singing about, let that not stop you from enjoying some glorious swedish power-pop.

On a related note, I’m loving The Draft by Firefox AK (video below):

MP3: Säkert! – Det Här Är Vad Dom Säger (expired)
MP3: Säkert! – Vi Kommer Att Dö Samtidigt (expired)
MP3: Säkert! – Det Kommer Bara Leda Till Nåt Ont (expired)

Swedes Please

We’re big fans of Eurovision at casa Homoeclectic. Even as a child living in Nigeria, I used to get the ESC’s taped and sent to me to play over and over again. I’m not sure whether it was the latent gay calling out from within me, or maybe Eurovision made me gay, but either way, it’s sadly one of the gay cliches that we subscribe to whole heartedly. Of all the countries to submit entries into Eurovision, the one that I always looked forward to was Sweden; guaranteed to be poptastic and cheesy as a slice of Herrgårdsost.

Unlike the UK , who never seem to get the pop stakes right, and keep trying to send novelty acts to the ESC, Sweden has a whole song contest of its own spanning mutiple weeks and getting entries from ‘real’ popstars and amatuers alike.

Melodifestivalen is an annual music competition organised by Sveriges Television and Sveriges Radio to determine the song and artist that will represent Sweden at the Eurovision Song Contest. It has been staged under various formats pretty much every year since 1959. The competition is broadcast live on television and radio, with considerable popularity, being the most popular television programme in Sweden every year since 2000. In 2006, an estimated 4.2 million people (almost 47% of Sweden's population) watched the finals.

The festivities kicked off last week, with the usual mix of schlager and europop, and I’ve posted the songs performed in the first two rounds. Come back next week for the third round.

Round 1

MP3: Elin Lanto – Money (expired)
MP3: Stefan Andersson & Aleena Gibson – Anything But You (expired)
MP3: Anna Book – Samba Sambero (expired)
MP3: Addis Black Widow – Clubbin' (expired)
MP3: Andreas Lundstedt – Move (expired)
MP3: Tommy Nilsson – Jag Tror På Människan (expired)
MP3: Sofia Berntsson – Hypnotised (expired)
MP3: Uno Svenningsson & Irma Schultz Keller – God Morgon (expired)

Round 2

MP3: Regina Lund – Rainbow Star (expired)
MP3: Marie Lindberg – Trying To Recall (expired)
MP3: Jimmy Jansson – Amanda (expired)
MP3: Cosmo4 – What's Your Name (expired)
MP3: Lustans Lakejer – Allt Vi En Gång Trodde På (expired)
MP3: Jessica Andersson – Kom (expired)
MP3: Svante Thuresson & Anne-Lie Rydé Första Gången (expired)
MP3: The Ark – The Worrying Kind (expired)

It's a Pleasure

Monday sees the sophomore release of Fred Ball’s (producer of Bertine Zetlitz’s Rollerskating as ell as a number of tracks off Brett Anderson’s forthcoming album) pet project Pleasure with a an album, simply entitled Pleasure 2.

Using a variety of vocalists (including Brett Anderson), the album is an 80’s electro dream with the spirit of Prince firmly embedded in its cheek.I only got the album a couple of days, and already, I’d have to say that it’s one of my favourite albums of the year for me (and not just because he features cowbells on a couple of tracks).

MP3: Pleasure - Out Of Love (expired)
MP3: Pleasure – Back To You (feat Brett Anderson) (expired)
MP3: Pleasure – Finest Thing (expired)