In the world of feminism, music videos can tend to get a pretty bad write up: glorified masculinity, highly misogynistic portrayal of women and all emphasized by the patriarchal bullshit soaked lyrics. But equally the music video is becoming one the most creative, beautiful and experimental modern art forms. Not that I need to tell you guys about how pretty music videos can be; the likelihood is that you are a blogger, and therefore by definition super indie and interesting with a music taste to match. Therefore we can celebrate this wondrous art form together, through what will hopefully develop into a little regular thing where I just share my favorite eye candy from the realms of music videos.
Lately I've been getting my rampant feminist on. Much to the annoyance/amusement of my peers. I've also been lurving a little bit of music – probably because I can comprehend how great Haim is, unlike particle physics. So these are a few of my empowerment songs to make your life a little more empowered.
As you may have gathered, this will be our final Music Monday. Now before you start rioting on the streets and stalking down my house in the middle of the night with torches and forks etc. I feel I should let you know that this is Cecily's doing and not mine. I did try to protest, however she says we should stop it because she always forgets. However this now means I can subject you to my uber cool music taste without being restricted by theme or days of the week! What fun!
In last weeks post, Cecily pointed out that I was absent due to being of at a music festival in South-West England called WOMAD (World of Music, Arts and Dance). I would love to tell you all about my experiences but for this post it's going to just be about the music due to lack of time.
I'll start with my favourite band just to make you sure that you actually listen to it. This was also the final band I saw, and they are soooooooo good live. They also happened to be the soundtrack to Obama's re-election campaign.
"What Makes a Good Man" by The Heavy
"Edge of Earth"by Syd Arthur
These guys were recommended to us by a friend, and then when we saw them we became all protective because they come from a city just up the road.
Iandoni
I have no idea what this video is going to be like, but they did this wedding song, and it was the most depressing thing in the world.
All has been quiet on the blogging front... Because I have actually decided to do a very brave thing: venture outside. It's been about 30 degrees for the last few days in England and I don't want to miss out on the chance to enjoy this rare occasion! Therefore I've even gone down to the beach with some friends and watched some open air theatre. Or at least I tried to, because on the one day I decide to do summery things is the one day it decides to rain.
So Cecily has ventured off to France so naturally she has decided on this weeks theme, but has been unable to post so it's me two weeks running! Aren't you lucky ;)
What? You want to know the theme? Geeezzzz, just look in the title....
FRANCE
Cecily: "La Vie en Rose" by Edith Piaf and "Le Temps de l'amour" by Francoise Hardy
Gwendolen: "Can't Speak French" by Girls Aloud
... Yes... I know... However the fact I dropped French in year 7, it did seem fitting.
Another week has passed and another Music Monday almost forgotten.......
So our theme this week is.....
COVERS
This is essentially very self indulgent as there are two covers that I would very much love to share with the world and so I took advantage of Cecily's memory and secured this theme before she came up with anything else... MWUHAHAHAH
Cecily: "Blackbird" by The Beatles (Glee cover)
I've never watched Glee, and cannot even name the individual who has sadly been in the news the past few days, but I remembered some time ago stumbling across a cover they did of "Blackbird", a beautiful song, so felt it was appropriate today.
Gwendolen: "White Noise" by Peace (Disclosure cover) and "Royals" by Bonjah (Lorde cover)
This is probably one of the best covers ever produced by the Live Lounge, and there are points on offer for every hidden song you can spot ;)
The sun has got his hat on yip yip hooray! Heat has finally decided to hit England so it only seemed fitting if that this weeks theme should be:
SUNSHINE!
Cecily: "Here Comes The Sun" by The Beatles and "Island In The Sun" by Harry Belafonte
The first thing that immediately sprang to my mind with "sunshine" is this lovely song by The Beatles:
This
other song by Harry Belafonte makes a good background for when you are
pouring yourself home-made lemonade and dancing about the kitchen. Bonus
points if it's on a record player and you are chatting with friendly
ghosts that haunt your house a la Beetle Juice. Bonus bonus points if
you are Winona Ryder (because I love you, that is, if you are Winona, if
not, I may love you anyway, but you don't get bonus bonus points).
Also,
the UK is technically an island, so I feel we should take the
opportunity to blast this during the brief sunny spells to make
pretending it is actually in the Caribbean easier.
Gwendolen: "Skirts" by The Other Tribe and "Anna Sun" by Walk The Moon
Yay Sun! Yay Summer! Yay killer pollen keeping me locked up inside all day! Yay walks in fields causing allergic conjunctivitis! No really- I get pretty nasty hay fever and the pollen count has been super high this year so it really hasn't been that much fun this year. However it's not all bad. I mean I get to - ah no. There is literally no redeeming side to hay fever.
I played this song rather a lot during the winter in hope that one day that great yellow orb in the sky might one day return, forgetting about the hoards of Gwendolen-slaying pollen.
Walk The Moon are my favourite band and always make me think of just dancing in the sun with friends and just being a teenager in general. Enjoy!
Two posts by Gwendolen in one day? Of course it's nothing to do with the fact Music Monday completely slipped my mind... What could you possibly be suggesting? The real question, however, is "What is the theme this week?" well the answer to that question is:
BLONDES
Cecily: "Jolene" by Dolly Parton, "La Isla Bonita" by Maddona
I may be slightly obsessed with this song. I may even be attempting to learn it on the guitar despite never having played the guitar before and may be suffering from the strings on our jazz guitar that feel like those funny cheese-cutting things.
I also love this one, it makes me think of my home country (my home country isn't the UK, but neither is it the place she mentions).
Finally for me, how could we not mention Blondie? It's in the name. (I wanted to add Marilyn Monroe's Diamonds Are A Girl's Best Friend, but youtube was being annoying).
Gwendolen: "White Nights" by Oh Land
Oh Land is a Danish singer, and therefore must be blonde. Before going into music, she was in the Danish National Ballet, but an injury forced her to go into the music industry instead. This music video is how I imagine Cecily's future to be...
Hey there you beautiful thang ;) This is our first regular feature (I'm sure there are more to come... I have few stored in the pipeline that is my mind) 'Music Monday'. I'm not usually one to use cliches and sound straight off The Apprentice, but in this case I will: It does what it says on the tin. Every Monday we shall post music and infiltrate your life with our personal soundtracks, which will be related to a theme. As this is still a baby blog and this is our first post in a series, it only seemed fitting that the theme should be:
BEGINNINGS
(For those that are colour blind, it says 'BEGINNINGS')
Now let's get into the nitty gritty in how this will actually work... Cecily and I will both choose between one and two songs (maybe even three if we're feeling cheeky) that relate to the theme; this may be rather obvious link or a very symbolic/deep/tenuous one. The actually blog will be posted alternately by Cecily and I- but because I am older and taller, I get to go first :) However, I'm also very lovely so I'll let Cecily have the first say, so take it away beautiful!
Cecily: 'Begin the Beguine'* by Cole Porter (sung by Ella Fitzgerald)
I'm only going for one song today. This came on several times while
we attempted to set up our blog and will now forever make me think of
its beginning. It's a good jazz classic to know, although not among my
favourite Cole Porter songs (a bit too soppy, although it is pretty),
but I hope you enjoy... *The beguine is a Caribbean dance a bit like the foxtrot, or so the dictionary says.
Gwendolen: 'Forever' by Haim, and 'Paradise' by Coldplay
So like normal, Cecily gets to be all vintage and cool, while I'm stuck with my mainstream songs, which pretty much everyone has probably heard :( HEY HO, does it really matter? My first song is 'Forever' by Haim (pronounced h-I-m). You may have heard of them, you may have not. If you haven't, they are a trio of sisters from California. As there debut single, 'Forever' is the beginning of their career, and I tend to have this band playing on repeat while writing blogs for this blog, which we have just begun. See- it totally links (and may I add, I also have teeny tiny huge girl crush on Este Haim, the blonde bassist).
My second song, which everyone would have heard of, is 'Paradise' by Coldplay. I'm really posting this one for my Mum just to make her sentimental. In my household, this will forever by associated with my brother leaving home and going off to begin University two years ago and thus the beginning of the best two years of my life what really felt like the start of us two growing up. Ironically, this song is about suicide. Which really has nothing to do with beginnings.
Well I hope you enjoyed our choices- or not. Y'know, everybody is entitled to their own opinions... Helps if they're like mine... But... Freedom of speech and all that...
Do comment and follow and I look forward to writing again :)
Gwendolen
(NB Cecily has requested that I do quickly mention that after we decided on this theme, she realised that Rookie's first monthly theme was beginnings, and that we're not trying to jump on the feministo themeos band wagon, and that clearly great minds think alike ;) )
Welcome Readers! (we're optimistic- it's highly likely that should be in the singular)
Let us introduce ourselves. We are Gwendolyn and Cecily.
If you immediately recognise those names from The Importance of Being Earnest, we already like you, probably (if you don't, shame on you, shame on you). Our names aren't actually those, but we liked them for several reasons that will probably be mentioned in a later post, possibly about how great Oscar Wilde is.
We want to blog pseudonymously because it holds a certain intrigue, and we like intrigue.
We decided on the name "Their Harangues and their Fancies" because you are likely to see harangues, "speeches or pieces of writing characterised by strong feeling or expression; tirades", on this blog as it is a way of us exploring what we think of things and, yes, having an occasional rant (in an amusing or interesting way, of course). "Fancies" as in things that we like. You will see lots of those. Plus who doesn't enjoy a fancy/eloquent/pretentious name?
We really hope you stick around or string along or tattoo our URL to your hand... So hopefully, until next time!
Au revoir,
Cecily and Gwendolyn
PS. Just to show how long we have been planning this, here are some conversations of ours (note the dates):
