P.S. - Hope everyone enjoyed Obama's speech tonight - it's going to be a helluva fight for the White House this year.

Title: Explorers (1985)
Rated: PG
Directed by: Joe Dante
Starring: Ethan Hawke as Ben Crandall
              River Phoenix as Wolfgang Muller
              Jason Presson as Darren Woods
Tagline: "You don't need a driver's license to reach the stars!"

By: Bo from Last Blog on the Left

Pre-screening memories: Ah, Explorers, I hardly remember ye.  When a buddy mentioned the movie, I had to freeze in place a moment as synapses not fired in years began to reconnect and offer up flashes of spaceships and a young River Phoenix.  And, then, more came.  I remembered the spaceship, looking much like the riders’ car from a Tilt-a-Whirl at a local fair, and the thing that drew me to the movie in the first place: adventure.

Ever a fan of the kids-on-their-own adventures like The Goonies (who are, indeed, good enough for me), and of the sci-fi flicks of my earlier years, such as Star Wars, this seemed like two great tastes that taste great together.  So why has Explorers fallen off the pop culture radar while others achieved ubiquitous reverence?  Who knows?  Prior to viewing again, I thought perhaps it was too fluffy, the Spacecamp-like entertainment that is immediately engaging, but has no lasting value; the cinematic equivalent of the Milky Way bar.  And those films have their place, the Saturday afternoon movies that you don’t feel guilty for falling asleep on, and no lingering urge to seek them out, to see what it is you missed while drooling on the arm of the couch.

Explorers is the tale of three kids who start having dreams of circuit boards, which they actually build.  Needless to say, it’s a fantasy.  The circuit boards turn out to be a method of traveling to the stars via some sort of electric bubble.  When they begin to receive strange messages while journeying in their makeshift spacecraft, they follow the signal into the stars and meet irritating aliens.

This is a movie that is more heart than brain by a long shot.  The spirit is so willing, too.  The themes of the outcast kids banding together to do something unexpected and wonderful hits all the right notes.  The first act of the movie hums along, introducing its characters well, and even treating the viewer to some post-Tron graphics that have managed to become quaint by today’s standards.  The whole thing goes off the rails, though, once the trio makes it to the aliens’ ship.  There are several too-long sequences that bog down the film as the kids investigate the strange alien vessel, but that’s nothing compared to the out-and-out trippiness of the aliens themselves.  Apparently, they’ve had access to Earth television, which has, in fact, rotted their brains.  They are schizophrenic and the scene overstays its welcome with a weird intergalactic talent show that’s about as entertaining as you remember every talent show you’ve ever seen.

New memories

I was happy to learn that I was correct on the Tilt-a-Whirl memory, but that was about the only solace I gained from this mess of a third act.  There are hints of frivolity, such as the school named after Charles M. Jones (or good old Chuck Jones of Looney Tunes fame to you and me).  There’s even a “Hey, wait, where’s the ground?!” Tunes-style joke here, but it feels so ridiculously out of place.  And what about the somber kid, Darren, whose father is apparently occasionally abusive?  What happened with him?  Eh, I just wanted it to be over.  There’s an hour’s worth of fun in Explorers, but the slop that ends the film makes it hard to suggest revisiting it.  This is probably one better left in the memory banks, where time has erased the irritation.

Listen to Bo's recollection of his re-entry into space with 'Explorers below or download it here.
[audio http://www.archive.org/download/NatsukashiEpisodeXixExplorers/explorersfinal.mp3]

Here's some 80s hair:

Cyndi Lauper

Pat Benatar

Flock of Seagulls

Now for some anime hair:

Dragonball Z

Sailor Moon

Tenchi Muyo

Well I showed some of the extremes of both the 80s and anime hair (although dragonball Z has notably crazier hair than shown).  Which do you think is crazier or more extreme 80s or anime hair?

Kagehime

"Definitivamente (Cyndi Lauper) tocará el 27 de noviembre en Lima. La lista de canciones para los shows del tour por Sudamérica todavía no ha sido confirmada, pero todos los conciertos serán similares en la región", expresó Teresa McSharry, ejecutiva de la empresa So What Management, encargada de representar a la artista en todo el mundo.

Si tuvimos una gran decepción al anunciar que Madonna no llegaría a Perú, Cyndi Lauper, una de sus máximas competencias en los 80's, llegará para calmar esta decepción y deleitar a todos aquellos que vivieron esas épocas.

El día será el jueves 27 de noviembre en el Estadio Monumental, según informaron representantes de la cantante. Por el momento no se tiene más información pero ya podemos ir ahorrando para una sorpresa más del 2008.

El tour latinoamericano debe arrancar el 11 de setiembre en Puerto Rico, para luego continuar por Brasil, Argentina, Chile, el Perú y culminar el 29 de noviembre en Caracas (Venezuela), según datos de la web Poll Star. Los tendremos informados.

las Canciones que va a cantar son:

Cyndi Lauper
1.Change of Heart
2.Rocking Chair
3.Set Your Heart
4.When You Were Mine
5.She Bop
6.Into the Nightlife
7.I Drove All Night
8.Girls Just Wanna Have Fun
***Encore***
9.Same Ol' Story
10.Time After Time
11.Money Changes Everything
12.Everyday People (Sly and the Family Stone Cover)
13.True Colors

Video:
Cyndi Lauper - She Bop

We don't usually just steal the material from other blogs. But . . . this item is so short that to restate it seems stupid & no time today to dig up more info or photos so here is the proof of our crime directly from www.TMZ.com

****************UPDATE AFTER THE JUMP!

From the Chicago Suntimes

Lilo's sneaky Friday here

Joining Sam at DJ gig, she bonds with Lauper

August 25, 2008Recommend (2)

BY BILL ZWECKER Sun-Times Columnist
They were baaaack! This time Lindsay Lohan's appearance at Crimson Lounge Friday night at the Hotel Sax was a big surprise -- as the actress returned to town for galpal Samantha Ronson's monthly DJ gig at the popular nightspot. Here's the scoop on what happened:

• The couple -- who have yet to officially confirm they're romantically involved -- spent the night dancing together in the DJ booth and showing off their mutual tattoos on their hands to fans.

Lindsay Lohan was on hand for galpal Samantha Ronson's DJ gig Friday night in Chicago.
(AP)

• Lilo was ''very affectionate'' with Ronson but also spent most of the night busily text-messaging friends behind the booth.

• When Ronson spun Lohan's single, ''Confessions of a Broken Heart,'' the two smiled and Ronson pointed lovingly at her girlfriend.

• Another surprise: After her ''Glamorama'' gig for Macy's at the Chicago Theatre, Cyndi Lauper popped into the club -- giving both Lohan and Ronson big hugs. She was overheard telling the women, ''Just be yourselves. Be who you are. Nobody today cares about people's [sexual orientation] -- at least nobody you need to care about.''

• Along those lines, Ronson was heard talking about ''pulling an Ellen and Portia,'' which made some think Lohan and Ronson may be seriously considering a walk down the aisle in California.

• Also spied dancing with an attractive blonde at Crimson Lounge: new Bears quarterback Kyle Orton -- dubbed ''super-hot'' by Lohan, Ronson and Lauper, who all admired the NFL player's dance-floor moves.

• The Chicago evening was obviously more fun for Ronson than the previous evening, when she was served with legal papers at the Whiskey Blue nightclub in the W Hotel in L.A. -- part of her legal battle stemming from her lawsuit against gossip blogger Perez Hilton.

From the Crimson Lounge: 

__________________________

And, in other Samantha and Linday news, Cojo decided to comment on Samantha's style.  Watch this:

____________________
And more - this time at www.gay.com. Belinda Carlise of the Go Gos was asked, "
What about Lindsay Lohan and the lesbian rumors?"

Belinda responded, "I think Lindsay Lohan and Samantha are an adorable couple. And I think they're really cute together! Really, really cute."

the vapors "turning japanese"

the who "pictures of lily"

billy idol "dancing with myself"

cyndi lauper "she-bop"

green day "longview"

violent femmes "blister in the sun"

elvis costello "pump it up"

iggy pop "i'm bored"

veruca salt "seether" (and for the record, i LOVE louise post!)

and to end, ween's "mister richard smoker".  i left out the buzzcocks b/c there's is a give away.

yes, that actually just happened.

If you’ve been on my Sensualist site you already know my computer crashed and I have to rebuild from scratch.  In the process it has led me to sort through photo disks and I have found quite the stockpile.  I did however get a new laptop, so while I play with the settings and get familiar with my new digs; you get a piece of my thoughts. 

A blast from the past had me giggling this morning.  I am not sure how I stumbled upon this particular song and video.  Cyndi Lauper caused quite a stir when I was younger.  My mother raised me in such a strict atmosphere not only was I not allowed to listen to this particular song, but along with many other girls out there I was told my palms would grow hair and I would go blind if I messed with the “danger zone” much like the She Bop song implies.  Below is an interesting bit of info I found on Wikipedia. 

Quoted from Wikipedia online:

“The song was controversial, owing to lyrics that addressed masturbation. Part of the lyrics, “They say I better stop - or I'll go blind” is an allusion to a common myth about masturbation. It was also included on the Parents Music Resource Center's “Filthy Fifteen” list, due to its sexual lyrics. Other songs on the list included tracks by Madonna, Prince, AC/DC, among others. This led to the creation of the parental advisory sticker. In an interview on the Howard Stern Show, she (Cyndi Lauper) stated that she recorded the vocals of the song naked.”

How is that for changing the way music history and censorship/parental advisories came about?  By the way, I often write my stories in various states of undress and on occasion (oh, no!) in the nude!  Why?  Because I am…um…hot and bothered.

So, when it comes to masturbation (pardon the come pun), are you the master of your domain?  If you’ve read at any length on my site here or elsewhere you know how I feel about masturbation.  I can hardly help myself.  It is pleasure and it feels fabulous!  The only thing I know could possibly be better is allowing my partner to watch.  Men love to watch…don’t you?  Men…and before anyone says I’m lumping all men together, I’ll say some men, most men, a few men, but generally speaking… men…seem to love the thought of knowing their woman is pleasuring herself whether it be while he is away and she is alone or in his presence and he can see her, hear her or feel her.  He just wants to know.  And, he wants all of the details or as many as he can glean from her.

Men, don’t you love it when your woman links her fingers in yours and takes you to the magic zone?  She slips your fingers between her folds and together you feel exactly what she does to bring herself to orgasmic bliss.  You feel the slippery wetness of her heat and passion; the swell of her arousal.  You are so close your breath and hers intermingle.  Not only can you feel the rise and fall of her breasts and the warmth of her soul, but you can taste the dewy moisture as it beads on her lip.  Then there are the tiny echoes that trail off her tongue from the depths of her throat as she rises to the climax and tumbles over the edge at her hand and yours. 

You love it, don’t you?  No question we do, too. 

Sou só eu ou a Hayley do Paramore parece ser filha da Cyndi Lauper?

E para matar a saudades...

letra

fotos tiradas da Internet

“This community for me is my beloved community,” she says. “This is not a money-making venture. I have been running with this community all my life, and when I hear people like George Bush talk about the gay community being antiAmerican it makes my blood boil.

“The guy who saved the White House, one of the heroes who crashed that plane on 9/11, was gay – the rugby player Mark Bingham, who died on United 93. And does Bush ever mention that? Does he f***! That gay guy saved his lousy ass. And this guy who says he prays to God, this guy who promotes hate and fear, this guy we call our President . . . This guy is the true antiAmerican.”

(via)

Of course, the gay guy didn't literally save Bush's lousy ass, since he was in Florida learning to read at the time.

Her sentiments are spot-on, though.

You could even say she sees George W. Bush's "true colors."

Har har.

But not in a good sweet way, obviously.

Oh look, here's a great version of "True Colors," recorded live on The View last year. Damn, she's still got it.

Cyndi Lauper

Et puis, avant-hier (11 août 2008), la vidéo de "Shut up and let me go" a été nominée pour les MTV Music Awards, catégories "Best UK Video". N'hésitez pas à voter. Résultats le 7 septembre 2008, en direct de Los Angeles.

[dailymotion id=k545dcEzvG7IBDGd0B&related=1]

Tout ça pour dire qu'il faut absolument te procurer ce superbe album des Ting Tings, "power pop électro dance fun", déjà sorti depuis mai. ça bouge, ça tangue, la voix envoûte, ça donne envie de lever la jambe et de faire "Yeah".

J'ai une mini-moi de 18 mois à la maison qui part en loopings en secouant les fessiers dès que je mets "Keep your head". Testez donc les Ting Tings sur vos enfants, c'est là que vous verrez toute l'efficacité d'un bon tempo binaire, de gimmicks répétitifs et de refrains enlevés.

Alors oui c'est vrai rien de nouveau sous le soleil. La voix de Katie White fait penser à Cyndi Lauper, Blondie, Gwen Stefani et quelques autres girlie power singer, la composition ne révolutionne pas mais tous les titres de l'album sont super efficaces (à l'exception de "we started nothing" que je vire de la playlist).

The Ting Tings se permettent même une excursion jazzy, avec "Traffic Light" qui sonne comme un bon vieux Fairground Attraction des 90's. Rappel :

Pour une critique d'album comme je ne sais pas les faire, je vous recommande celle de TheGhost92, ici.

Et puis bien sûr, pour acheter l'album, rendez-vous dans la boutique.

Sinon, dès que j'arrive à insérer une playlist sur ce blog pour vous faire écouter les titres (en plus des vidéos), je le fais, promis. Genre avec Deezer ou Jiwa. Si vous savez comment faire (wordpress n'accepte visiblement pas flash ni javascript), shootez moi un mail. Merci.

Ende der 80ger Jahre hat sich der Kerl nach Hamburg bemüht und ich hatte damals auch noch Geld. LP's  hatte ich  fast alle von ihm, und war seit Jahren begeistert, das er immer musikalisches Neuland entdeckte und auch spielte,  statt seiner "alten" Stücke immer wieder anzududeln. Das damalige (Open-Air) - Konzert in Hamburg wurde in die Messehallen verlegt. Ich hatte damals mich schon darauf eingestellt, dass ich beim Konzert nur seinen Rücken sehen durfte. Nö das war aber nicht so! Durch die Verlegung in die Messehallen kam ich in den Genuss in der 2 Reihe zu stehen. Ich durfte einen gut gelaunten Miles erleben und das auch noch von vorne. Er war am Anfang des Konzertes genervt vom Hamburger Publikum weil es von Ihm erst noch warm gespielt werden musste. Typisch Hamburg!

Aber jetzt zu Time after Time. Ich kannte das Stück von Cyndi Lauper und fand es grausam, das änderte aber sich als Miles sich Time after Time vornahm. So ist das Leben.

Miles Davis - Time after Time (via Youtube)

Ein paar Patzer sind in der Aufnahme drin. 

Cyndi Lauper - Time After Time (via Youtube)

Ich habe noch eine schöne Version Tuck & Patti gefunden natürlich jazzig!

Auf Tuck & Patti werde ich später noch einmal eingehen! .

Hace unos cuantos años atrás era casi impensable que las chicas aceptaran a un muchacho sin previo afane de - por lo menos- 6 meses. Y ni que decir de una chica tenga una vida sexual activa y no una pareja estable; la que lo hacía era una golfa y no merecía tener a un chico que la respete. No podía concebirse que una chica esté con un chico y a los 3 meses esté pensando en salir con otro. Mirar a otro que no sea tu pareja era pecado, y aceptar bailar con un especímen que no sea tu enamorado o tu mejor amigo extremadamente feo, no se podía.

A lo que voy es que la mujer de hoy ha cambiado un huevo y la palabra Diversión se ha vuelto el himno del sexo femenino. Si hay alguien que encarna a esta nueva mujer sin limitaciones obligatoriamente autoimpuestas, es mi amiga Bea. Cada que conversamos y la veo tan suelta, tan ella, tan orgullosa de lo que es y lo que quiere, sin miedo de ir sobre lo "correctamente" establecido, recuerdo a Samantha Jones de Sex and the City.

Sin ser una golfa, Samantha representa a la mujer que muchas quisiéramos ser, y no me refiero a ejercer nuestra sexualidad cuando se nos venga en gana, o todas las noches con alguien diferente, sino a que ella es ella sin miedo a lo que los demás puedan decir. Se viste como quiere. Conoce a quien quiere. Chapa y hace cositas más con quien quiere, y no tiene remordimientos. Habla como quiere. No juzga ni permite ser juzgada. En otras pálabras, es LIBRE. 

¿ Cuántas no quisiéramos ser como ella? ¿ Cuántas no queremos salir a la calle como se nos venga en gana sin tener miedo a que un desadaptado venga y nos diga cosas asquerosas, o nos meta la mano? ¿Cuántas no hemos querido ligarnos a un pata y no tener que pensar al día siguiente en "quiénes me vieron", o justificarnos diciendo "estaba muy mareada, la cagué"? ¿ Cuántas no hemos querido mandar al diablo lo que nos ha impuesto la sociedad y ser nosotras mismas?

No estoy defendiendo el hacer lo que uno quiere pisoteando a los demás. Estoy hablando de que si una chica está sola, no tiene compromiso, y por lo tanto a nadie quien pudiera resultar herido con sus acciones, ADELANTE!

Sí chicos, las mujeres queremos divertirnos y a lo grande!

Pearl Jam, My Morning Jacket, R.E.M., Trent Reznor and several others, signed a petition asking US Presidential contenders Barack Obama and John McCain to have a debate in the flood-ravaged city of New Orleans. The petition was then sent to Obama and McCain via the U.S. Senate, but neither has responded.

Sure, Obama pretended to be cool by saying that his iPod is chocka-block with pretty cool bands – but I highly doubt he’s about to start taking advice from them.

Personally, I could care less what musicians think about politics. If I wanna make an informed decision, I’m gonna watch the news – not MTV. It’s good that musicians are passionate about politics and may get some kids interested in decision making – but for goodness sake kids – don’t blindly vote one way or another just cause your favourite band says so!

It seems that musical thievery is running rampant!
Iggy and the Stooges have had a truckload of equipment stolen from outside their Montreal hotel. The Canadian bacon found the truck a few blocks away, but all the gear was gone. All the equipment has serial numbers and such and probably isn’t gonna be on eBay anytime soon.

Iron Maiden’s Adrian Smith has had to resort to playing air-guitar in concerts after his Stratocaster was pinched in Athens, Greece. It’s a one of a kind axe and its gonna be pretty tough to sell as well. The band is offering a signed tour jacket as reward for its safe return.

It’s not unusual for rappers to have a beef, but it’s probably rare for a beef to transcend genres. Jay-Z has recently appeared on stage at a Kanye West show and has had a dig at Oasis’ Noel Gallagher. Previewing part of a track from his in-the-works Blueprint 3 album, Hova raps "That bloke from Oasis said I couldn't play guitar/Somebody should have told him I'm a fuckin' rock star/Today is gonna be the day that I’m gonna throw it back to you".

The rap is in response to the statement Gallagher made, saying it was “wrong” that Jay-Z headlined the Glastonbury festival. However Jay-Z has also said that “I don’t bear any grudge, it’s all good” referring to Noley-Boy. So it just seems that the media is just trying to push both artists into a slinging match, and Hove is being a bit of a smart-ass cashing in on a hot topic. Can’t wait to hear what the rest of the Blueprint 3 is gonna sound like.

Rollingstone.com posted this piece of news:
Robert Hazard, the writer of Cyndi Lauper’s hit “Girls Just Want to Have Fun” and his own “Elevator of Life,” died unexpectedly after surgery on August 5th. He was 59.

The terrible thing about this news (other than Hazard’s actual death) is that the one thing he is going to be remembered for is writing that nonsensical gem for Lauper. “Girls....” is cheesy enough that you can’t hate it too much, but it’s certainly nothing you’d wanna be remembered for! Ironically, Rolling Stone fucked up the title of the man's only other hit, "Escalator of Life."

NIN’s Trent Reznor cancelled a show last night in Massachusetts due to a throat infection. He wrote on the bands website:
 "Just want to personally say how sorry I am to have to do this. I never take postponing a show lightly and if there were any possible way I could pull this off I would. This is a very frustrating and maddening situation for me and I appreciate your understanding. I'll make it up to you."
Throat infection my arse! Old mate Trent probably just wanted to watch the Olympic opening ceremony!

More Cowbell!

Back in 1986, before men were allowed to cry or women were allowed to wear trousers, people used to dress their emotional effusion behind synthesisers, dual-layered harmonies and echo-reverb.  Though the music of the 80s may sound overly felicitous, or even crass in its gushing, a closer inspection leads us to think that, behind the specious happiness of the booming economies and abundance of the times, people's hearts were still breaking, some went without and yet others had little in between.

As a child of the 80s I still feel that tingle down my spine when I hear the wail of a guitar against a synthesised wall of noise.  I know it's not cool to say that, but it's true.  When I hear those empty keys of those piano melodies like soliloquy it transports me back to the solipsism of childhood bedrooms in front of old TV shows or the crackle and fuzz of a tape player.  Most 80s music seemed to have a nostalgia for the future and, now that we're living in it, that nostalgia can only be for some sort of dream world. We went off track somewhere.

The Hits 5 compilation is one that we used to have when I was a kid. It was released in 1986, meaning that I must have been around four when it came out.  We had it on tape and used to listen to it in the car on long journeys.  I can remember listening to it on my first tape player, thinking that this is what the world was really like. Though this isn't the full compilation (I couldn't find all the tracks on the Internet), it has enough to give you the general gist of the thing and maybe help you remember a thing or two about where you might have come from.

Track List

1. The Bangles - Walk Like An Egyptian

2. Don Johnson - Heartbeat

3. Paul Young - Wonderland

4. Bruce Hornsby - The Way It Is

5. NIck Camen - Each Time You Break My Heart

6. Paul Simon - You Can Call Me Al

7. Eurhytmics - Thorn In My Side

8. The Stranglers - Always The Sun

9. The Pretenders - Don't Get Me Wrong

10.  Dead or Alive - Brand New Lover

11. Haywoode - Roses

12. Cyndi Lauper - True Colours

13. Peter Cetera - Glory Of Love

14. Pyschedelic Furs - Heartbreak Beat

15. George Michael - A Different Corner

16. Red Box - For America

17. The The - Infected

18. Robert Palmer - Addicted To Love

Download. Part 1. Part 2.

From Philly.com: Robert Hazard, 59, the Philadelphia-bred rock troubadour who wrote the pop anthem "Girls Just Want to Have Fun," died unexpectedly Tuesday night after surgery at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, his widow, Susan, confirmed today. Mr. Hazard, who lived with his wife and two teenage sons in the Adirondacks and in Vero Beach, Fla., last month had canceled a planned fall tour without explanation. Robert Hazard and the Heroes, born out of the late-1970s punk movement, were a fixture on the local bar scene through the mid-1980s. One night in a motel in Delaware, Mr. Hazard sat in a bathtub and in 15 minutes wrote "Girls Just Want to Have Fun," a sprightly pop tune covered in 1983 by Cyndi Lauper. Labeled a feminist anthem, it shot to No. 1. Miley Cyrus' remake is included on her new album, Breakout. In an autobiography from 2003, Mr. Hazard - born Robert Rimato - acknowledged that his father was an opera singer. "Obviously, I didn't follow in his footsteps, but did learn a bit about music appreciation," he wrote. "I started singing and writing songs about about age 10. I didn't really play guitar till much later. In my teens I would audition at coffee houses like the Second of Autumn and the Edge" in the Philadelphia area. "I never got a job, but learned about acoustic music by hanging out at these places listening to Eric Andersen, Chris Smither, Jimmy Webb, and other great song writers and poet guitar players." From his first marriage, he had a daughter, Corrina. With Susan, whom he married in 1986, he had sons Rex and Remy. The couple own an antiques shop near their home in Old Forge, N.Y. In his autobiography, Mr. Hazard recounted his big break in 1982: "One night, we were playing a little joint called J.C. Dobbs on South Street. Kurt Loder was in town to review the opening of a world tour by another band called the Rolling Stones, who were playing at JFK Stadium that same night. After the Stones concert, Kurt stopped into Dobbs for a beer. I stayed up talking with him till 5 o'clock in the morning. The next month, there was a two-page spread in Rolling Stone magazine, pictures and all, raving about the band. Soon after that, we were signed to RCA Records." The Hazard song "Escalator of Life" charted soon after. In more recent years, he delved into country, forming a band The Hombres. He said his favorite shows were what he called "the stripped-down acoustic concerts I did with my buddy Michael Pilla. I thought these were the most rewarding and the most appreciated by my audience." - Michael Klein