My Best Cobain-related purchase

For all those that do not like inspirational figures, saddening but fufilling life stories, drugs, rock and roll, and just plain reality: look away now.

I bought this a couple of days back, and it really is one of the best Non-fiction 'books' I own, and undoubtedly my best Cobain-related purchase (Cause I own a lot of stuff already), and this is the icing on the cake for my collection.

It may not be your type of thing, but if you have a gift of putting scrapbooks together, or just like looking back on times, then this could be for you.

With an incredible interest in Kurt Cobain myself, this is perfect. It includes never-before seen pictures, drawings of childhood, journal entries, documents, other personal items and a ton of memorabilia. Recreations of polaroids and actual lyric pages that were the start to the soundtrack of Nineties America ... all here. There's even an audio CD that includes never-before-released spoken-word material, and it's just like poetry.

With the biography telling every detail alongside (you can get the full biography Heavier Than Heaven by Charles R. Cross also) which really is a pleasure to read, warts and all account of one of the most talented artist of the modern era.

I won't start to preach about the incredible talent, stories of Kurt, I'll just say before you make any judgements upon his life, read this book.

It really is a beauty. And an imperfect one, at that.

Riot Grrl and warming up the winter months...

Today I am writing in light of a very beautiful purchase.
Beautiful may be the wrong word to use, but we'll see.

12 years on, I still must stress the importance of a particular album that is in my "Top 5" list of albums. It may be a tad influenced and biased by my own opinion, but on that alone, no one should undermine the beauty of this one album I bought earlier in the week. It is severely underrated.

The 3rd album from the Olympia Rock veterans, and the centre of the"Riot Grrl" movement came after a 4 year break .This band does have some serious issues involving line-ups; The members change again and again, maybe due to one particular member who is publicly known to have a string of issues.

But... This album is proof that writing can change considerably into an artist/band's career, and if you take one influence away, the final product can differ slightly four years later. It is a large "up yours" to all the doubters.

Have you guessed yet?


After Hole's 2nd album was rumoured to be filled with much of the writings of Kurt Cobain himself, people doubted that Hole (Courtney Love, mainly) could actually write an album that would sell. Courtney obviously wanted help with the band's 2nd album, because she desperately wanted to compete in the same category as her Husband's reinvention of Rock, and development of Alternative music.



But,in 1998, Hole came along again, and produced Celebrity Skin, obviously without the late Cobain and his rumoured influence.
...And so the story goes. It seems that, actually, Hole can make beautiful music themselves (Eric Erlandson's quite simply genius composing skills, and Courtney love's ability to write thoughtful lyrics herself, without her husband.)

Album's highlights have to be the sentimental qualities and deep lyrics of Malibu, the very sensitive tones (and whopping chord sequences, it must be said) of Dying, and Summery feelings of Boys On The Radio, which just sounds like it is meant for the pop charts.

It's a different Hole, yes. But a deeper, sensitive and actually quite thoughtful Hole, too.



Give it a try. It's made for the summery days that will be here soon. (:

Avaliable in all good music stores.

Peace, Love, Empathy (oh, and Grrl) x

OMG, you look just like Shakira, No No, You're Catherine-Zeta...

Happy February, Everyone!



To Start: Today is just like any other day, and that means I'm not going to wish you all a Happy St.Valentine's Day and start gushing about soppy Take That love ballads.

The only sign of that holiday where I live is the deep pink polish I have on my Toenails, and the chocolate buttercream cupcakes with edible hearts on my dining room table, a present (or a joke) from my lovely mother. (:


But if we were to talk about present-buying for your other half , or just for the single person to treat themselves to a album this holiday (because you never need a reason for buying yourself a new album), your thoughts should go out to the new Florence Welch of the year and brunette beauty Marina Diamandis with her generally misleading plural name Marina & The Diamonds. Of which, the "Diamonds" are her fans, she says encouragingly.

Her album The Family Jewels is out tomorrow, and includes another nail-biting view of the dream of Hollywood in single Hollywood, about an infectious disease that seems to affect some certain, blonde girls, and the "puking american dreams". Her vocals are gorgeous moments of deep melodic tones and a realistic edge that are captured perfectly in this single, also.


One thing we know, is that Marina's debut is 12 songs from a girl who's surely down to earth, and another pop female artist that is definitely not obsessed with "the mess that's America" and filled with a pop-sarcasm that is sure to win us over.

Her sound? You have to listen to it to understand it. It's a contradicting messy mix of genres and clever lyrics. The British music industry will accept this kind of thing, as it has done with many, many others...




And for all those who want a love-sick guitar ballad this Valentines: Paramore's The Only Exception is one of their best songs to date, and a Hayley Williams shows she can do a different side. Warning: It may get you all sentimental.











The Family Jewels by Marina & The Diamonds is out tomorrow on Vinyl/CD/Download on the 15th February.





Peace, Love, Empathy.