Monday Music: I love Kryhitka’s new album

Since I got to go to their new year show last night, and got a copy (thanks to Sasha for insisting we all go).

If you’re into Ukrainian music, you ought to know Kryhitka Tsahes. Following the death of Mikhailo Gichan, I guess they lay dormant for a while, until coming back as Kryhitka. Here is just one of the results, off their new album, Recept:

You don’t really get the sense of how great Kasha’s voice is from recordings alone, you have to see the perform live to get the full idea. I like how their songs have this subtle, but biting sense of humour. At the end of an emotional love song last night, Kasha finished with the words, “but being friends is great,” which is exactly the sort of horrible thing you might say to yourself to justify whatever emotional torture you’re going through. It’s both adorable and right on the money.

I loved the set design last night too: “…when he shall die, take him and cut him out in little stars and he will make the face of heaven so fine that all the world will be in love with night and pay no worship to the garish sun.”

Shos’ na zrazok – Kryhitka
Track 3 – Sigur Rós
Us – Regina Spektor
Love & Harm – Leatherbag
Scenic World – Beirut
I Go To Sleep – Sia
Hard Times – Eastmountainsouth
The Anxiety of a Cloud – 1 Panic
Hollywood Bowl – Adam Green
Lisztomania – Pheonix

Vintage Soviet New Year cards

Scanned and provided to the general public by the lovely Marya Koshkina here and here. There were no official celebrations of Christmas in the USSR, of course. All of that energy was shifted to celebrating the New Year.

This has to be one of my favourites:

Because I was born in 1984, I was able to experience something of what this card portrays. And by that I mean that I got to watch other people drink Soviet Champagne.

Tuesday goodness: Stereotyping People by their Favorite Indie Bands

According to this, I’m a gay guy.

Alternatively, I’m a boy who thinks that Ocarina of Time is the greatest game ever made — which is frighteningly close, except for the “boy” part. Or just a frequent transcendental experience haver. But mostly, I’m a gay guy.

Monday music felt like Christmas time

two thousand miles is very far through the snow...
two thousand miles is very far through the snow

2000 Miles – The Pretenders
Sidekick – Lisa Mitchell
Life in a Northern Town – Dream Academy
Jackson – Hem
I Gaer – Sigur Rós
S utra shël sneg – Akvarium
My Girls – Animal Collective
Lonesome Swan – Glasvegas
My Sister – Leatherbag
Twice – Little Dragon

The Orthodox Church around here doesn’t celebrate Christmas until January 7th, but whatever, there’s not reason to not be internationalist. Here’s one of my favourite Christmas songs of all time:

And, of course, here’s the same song I listen to every Christmas, this time done by Coldplay, and not badly too (everyone hates Coldplay, but I couldn’t give a shit):

I remember being reminded of this song when I walked into a Donna Karan boutique in Dubai. It played as I browsed cashmere dresses I couldn’t afford. It was warm outside, I was wearing sparkling flats, almost as good as diamonds in the snow, but not quite. Not quite.

“Fully sexually available to men”? Haven’t we been through this?

Yes, Virginia, we have.

Still, this is kind of a special moment in the history of the feminist blogosphere: transphobia AND rape apologia, in one nifty little stocking stuffer of a post:

sex-pos transwomen–if i were born male, like you were, i might be “sex-positive,” too.  you know:  exhibitionist, pro-porn, and squeeee!-fully sexually available to men.  if only…. — from someone called factcheckme

This darling individual also goes on to make the following precious statement:

while the T’s in GLBT have all the political power and protection that comes from co-opting the GLB movement…

“Political power and protection,” eh? “Protection” that results in hate crimes against trans women all over the world? “Protection” that ensures that major media outlets can’t even be bothered with using the right pronouns when it comes to talking about a murdered trans woman? THAT kind of protection?

crazy + powerful = “eccentric,” doncha know!  and “eccentric” is f-u-n, which is about all it takes to be wrapped in the teeny-tiny bosom of the twenty-something fun-fems.

Just to give you one example: It sure is “fun” when you’re going out with a friend in the cosmopolitan urban center known as London and the two of you have to be extra-careful when it comes to choosing a pub or restaurant, because both of you know without a doubt that if you choose the wrong one, something ugly will happen to your friend. While I’m fully aware that bad things can and do happen to all of us, I know that statistically speaking, violence against trans women is nothing to joke about. And it makes me bitter. And it makes me angry. Because all I want to do is have a couple of drinks, talk about pop music, and eat some goddamn oysters. And it’s assholes like you who think that my friend doesn’t deserve the basic human dignity of a normal evening out, let alone the basic human dignity of going through life without being discriminated against and scorned.

I’ll press my teeny-tiny bosom against anyone I damn please, in the meantime. So sorry that I didn’t ask for your approval first. Funny how it works out, doesn’t it? First it’s men telling you all about whom “nice girls” should and shouldn’t associate with, then it’s fellow feminists. Same shit, different demographic.

To go back to the comment about us being “fully sexually available to men,” Ren is right, Caroline is right, this is offhand rape apologia. It’s as if the people who spout it honestly believe that there is a certain class of willing “comfort women” out there. I don’t even know what kind of twisted logic… Actually, wait, I do know exactly the kind of twisted logic we’re talking about here. It’s the same twisted logic that leads certain men to utter phrases such as “you can’t rape a slut” in all seriousness. So revolutionary, that.