The way to a healthier me...

...or something.



Thanks to my girlfriend's connections, I could get hold of a VIP gym membership card (regular price 800 €) for just 240!!

With my new stressful lifestyle and tons of work at the office, I could do with some exercise. And I intend to get it!


UPDATE:

Two months after this post, I've been five times to the gym, which makes this incredible deal rather crappy value for money and me, a sad, lazy bastard

Life in The Office

Well, this is my first entry in 2 months and 10 days. It has been a combination of laziness, lack of strenght to communicate with the outside world and, oh yes,a new job.

For some time I used to see myself as some sort of skinny David Brent (right). Now that I'm older, I like to think of myself as a dark-haired Gareth Keenan. (pictured below)

Ok, my life if not like working in Slough. Madrid is way cooler. And I get to talk to important people in other cool cities, like er...Chatou or Fuenlabrada.

If after reading this you are not even mildly amused, please get the BBC's excellent series on DVD. There is not an Spanish version that I'm aware of, though I can provide you with my onw translation of the pilot episode. Just drop me a line.

Samorost

Welcome to the beautiful and weird world of Samorost.

On my iPod these days...

Well well well, the spring harvest is here and some things are good indeed!


Darren Hayman, "Table for One"
Thankfully, the ex-Hefner frontman has gone back to the style that we liked so much, and thrashed that stupid analog keyboard he used to much in tha latter Hefner days. It's no Fidelity Wars, but it's a fine collection of songs. You can also try "Cortinaland", a 5-track Ep released last summer. You can find out more about Darren on the old Hefner website.



Electrelane, "Axes"
These four girls' instrumental songs will thrill you if you appreciated My Bloody Valentine's soft, inscrutable vocals or Stereolab's beautiful loops. It’s loud and quiet, aggressive and calming, menacing and sweet, slow-paced and frenzied. Above all it’s a startlingly beautiful and unique record. You can meet the girls here.



Architecture in Helsinki, "in case we die"
This is the nicest surprise of al the records I've been listening to recently. The eight Australians accomplish without all the hype what a band like Clap your hands tries to (and fails), and deliver an album that is dangerously addictive. These guys may become the new Arcade Fire, and if you want to check them out, all you have to do is go to their website and listen to some clips.

¿Borrachina?, ¿Marchosa? Tal vez seas la monja perfecta.

¿Conoces bien el mundo y la vida? Pues mejor podrás ayudar a los hombres y mujeres de este mundo. Y no serás la primera: Santa María Magdalena, sin ir más lejos, también fue una cachonda como tú.

Piénsalo. Piensa en ser religiosa. Más que valor, hace falta mucho amor. (P.C.)

Wow, this order must be desperate to get new recruits...

Like Father, not Like Son

 "Trying to eliminate Sadam Hussein would have incurred incalculable human and political costs. ... We would have been forced to occupy Baghdad and, in effect, rule Iraq. ... There was no viable 'exit strategy' we could see, violating another one of our principles. Furthermore, we had been self-conciously trying to set a pattern for handling aggression in the post-cold war world. Going in and occupying Iraq, thus unilaterally exceeding the United Nations' mandate, would have destroyed the precedent of international response to aggression that we hoped to establish. Had we gone the invasion route, the United States could conceivably still be an occupying power in a bitterly hostile land."

- George H.W. Bush and Brent Scowcroft in their 1998 book "A World Transformed."

Taken from Andrew's blog: http://ajpilgri.blogspot.com/

Valladolid's Godzilla

The Furries live in Madrid

Yessir! I was lucky enough to see them for the second time. As usual, it was a small crowd with the occasional drunk Welsh expatriate...

I read somewhere that SFU are the British answer to the Flaming Lips, only better. Well, one of their shows is guaranteed to make you laugh and think, all of this among references to UFO encounters and pictures of Tony and George W with the words "liar" and ''murderer" superimposed while they performed a 20-minute techno version of their classic "The man don't give a fuck".


They're also a technology-savvy team, deploying some amazing visuals to increase the impact of their sonic attack: the highlight of an already-excellent set is new track 'Zoom!', which explodes across their backdrops like a supernova on an alien mothership whilst the music swells around it. When the band departs from the stage after a distorsion-filled ''Receptacle for the Respectable'', I'm quite satisfied.

left: a shot from the "juxtapose with U" video

Now listen to this: it's guaranteed to give you 65% more intelligence, and it was recorded live&acoustic at the Minnesota Public Radio or something.

Ah! Brokeback...

More cartoons here

The birds, pt.II

On My iPod Today

We are Scientists, "With Love and Squalor"

With Love and Squalor is the debut LP from We Are Scientists. Here you’ll find lyrics about girls and drinking and little else, guitar-heavy verses, and more riffs than average. One of my favourite new records, you'll love them if you like Maxïmo Park or Franz Ferdinand. Check out "This Scene is Dead" or "The Great Escape" , two of the best songs in the album.

A few books

Pornochacha has been reading a lot lately. Well, a lot is relative – for some weird reason I only read in trains and in the metro, very rarely at home. Some books I’ve liked a lot recently are:



In Cold Blood, by Truman Capote.
A real story about the murder of a family in 1959 in Kansas. Capote went there as a journalist and this is the story of what happened. There are also two excellent movies about it, with the most recent one (Capote) about to be released in Europe.









Manhattan Transfer, by John Dos Passos.
If you have been, or thinking about going to NYC, this book is a must. Well, this book is a must anyway, definitely one of the masterpieces of 20th century literature. Lots of stories, some interconnected, some not, about life, love, death, success and failure in the Big Apple. It is set between early 1900 and the 20’s, but it could have happened today.





Norwegian Wood, by Haruki Murakami.
This guy is the best well-known modern Japanese writer, and this novel, for some reason that escapes me, is what everyone is reading now in Spain. (in case someone thought it was a comedy, the publisher changed the title to Tokio Blues). Sad and beautiful, like the song.
If you like this, you'll love Sputnik Sweetheart by the same author.

Thank god it's over

Ho ho ho! Yes, it seemed like it would never end, but the festive season is finally over. We can now concentrate on getting depressed over unfulfilled resolutions of quitting smoking, losing weight, joining a gym or making babies. As we say over here: "did you spend a nice holiday, or did you spend it with your family?"

The good news is that this year we decided to spend a good holiday, and to flee to London, a place renowned for not celebrating Christmas.
You can see our sorry faces if you click here.

Moving is over!

After a looooong wait, the moving truck finally arrived (it must have been 22:30) and parked a block away from home. In an episode that could make it to an Almodovar movie, a local guy proposed we stopped the traffic at Gran Via so that the truck could reverse (my area is a maze of one-way narrow streets).
It eventually made to our door, completely blocking the street and almost hitting on the balconies...amazing.

A big, BIG thank-you to Pepo, Servan and Chema for their help in taking the bokes to our third-floor appartment, I think I whould have ended up in hospital without them. Guys, I owe you a beer (or ten!)

Underrated

If there was any justice in this world, this record would be considered one of the best of the 90's. Those of you who like My Bloody Valentine will appreciate it.
I got the vinyl in London in 1992, and my wages at the time (£2.17 an hour) ment that I had to pack t-shirts for more than four hours to buy it. Compare that to 2005, when we download music for free...
When lessons started again, I made a big colour copy of the sleeve and covered my portfolio with it. I loved the look on my classmates' faces when they saw it. :-)

Röyksopp : "The Understanding"

This record, my friends, is probably the best of 2005. The two norwegians have surpassed their excellent "Melody A.M." and proved that the second album should not be difficult when you've got genuine talent.
This is a much more electronic and dancey record than their debut, but remains quite eclectic, with tunes that will becume club anthems (Only this moment) and others that remind to Jean-Michel Jarre (Alpha Male) or Air (Someone like me).
A fucking masterpiece, man!

Moving news

It seems like my things will finally arrive next Tuesday, three weeks later than agreed. Now let's see how do I take these damn 30 Kg boxes (28 of them) to a third floor (no elevator, of course..it would spoil all the fun...)

I'm going to regret not having burned my books when these nice guys from the Nazi party came over...

Marketing estilo madrileño

I bet you don't have anything near this imaginative in Brussels, London or Frisco (CO)

Calle Hortaleza, just around the corner from my place.

Saul Williams

I've been listening all day to this guy. Poetry meets rap, at its best


I want my money back. I'm down here drowning in your fat. You got me on my knees praying for everything you lack. I ain't afraid of you. I'm just a victim of your fears. You cower in your tower praying that I'll disappear, I got another plan, one that requires me to stand. On the stage or in the street, don't need no microphone or beat. And when you hear this song, if you ain't dead then sing along. Bang and strum to these here drums til you get where you belong.

I got a list of demands written on the palm of my hands. I ball my fist and you're gonna know where I stand. We're living hand to mouth! You wanna be somebody? See somebody? Try and free somebody? I gotta list of demands written on the palm of my hands. I ball my fist and you're gonna know where I stand. We're living hand to mouth! Hand to mouth!

List of Demands (reparations)

Pictures of my neighbourhood

I took these pics yesterday, it was a beautiful cold sunny day. Who says Barcelona is more beautiful??? :-)


You can view them ( and more) on my Flickr page.