OK so I haven't written for a long time. My health has gotten in the way. I'm still ill, but occasionally I have an idea. Today is one of those days. HURRAH!
Where to start. Firstly, Radiohead brought out A Moon Shaped Pool this May. I love it and it's up there with OK Computer and In Rainbows as one of my favourite of their albums.
Secondly, I enjoy watching Strictly Come Dancing. I took ballet and tap classes between the ages of three and 14 and I still love dancing. It's a bit tricky with chronic fatigue and a tibia fracture that's only 75% healed, but I do try. Endorphins and all that.
Some time last year I decided to make a list of tracks that I would dance to if I ever made it onto SCD. Today I was sitting in my yarden in the sunshine, thinking about the series of SCD that starts this week. I was listening to A Moon Shaped Pool and thinking how Burn The Witch would make a great ballroom tango song.
I take the fantasy further and it's Halloween week; in homage to the video I come up with the story for the dance. Tangos usually feature "a couple having some sort of argument" plot. So in this dance my partner would be a Witch Finder, possibly wearing a creepy plague mask. I'd be the witch he'd fallen in love with and he was torn about burning me at the stake. Pretty good argument fodder if ever there was any.
If you haven't heard the song or seen the video, here it is. Think The Wicker Man animated Trumpton -style.
As it's my SCD fantasy I'm dancing with Pasha Kovalev (pictured above). I like his choreography, OK?
Not every couple gets to do each type of dance, depending on which week they're eliminated. But it's my fantasy so Pasha and I at least get to the final so we can do all the styles. There are 14 dances, split between the disciplines of ballroom and Latin. To generalise, ballroom = man in a suit, lady in a ballgown, traditional hold; Latin = man in tight pants with his chest out, lady wearing not very much, and a lot of hip movement!
I've decided to add the rest of my list here (with accompanying videos) for your pleasure. Enjoy!
Waltz: Elbow - The Loneliness of a Tower Crane Driver
Charleston: tUnE-yArDs - Water Fountain
Some time last year I decided to make a list of tracks that I would dance to if I ever made it onto SCD. Today I was sitting in my yarden in the sunshine, thinking about the series of SCD that starts this week. I was listening to A Moon Shaped Pool and thinking how Burn The Witch would make a great ballroom tango song.
I take the fantasy further and it's Halloween week; in homage to the video I come up with the story for the dance. Tangos usually feature "a couple having some sort of argument" plot. So in this dance my partner would be a Witch Finder, possibly wearing a creepy plague mask. I'd be the witch he'd fallen in love with and he was torn about burning me at the stake. Pretty good argument fodder if ever there was any.
If you haven't heard the song or seen the video, here it is. Think The Wicker Man animated Trumpton -style.
As it's my SCD fantasy I'm dancing with Pasha Kovalev (pictured above). I like his choreography, OK?
Not every couple gets to do each type of dance, depending on which week they're eliminated. But it's my fantasy so Pasha and I at least get to the final so we can do all the styles. There are 14 dances, split between the disciplines of ballroom and Latin. To generalise, ballroom = man in a suit, lady in a ballgown, traditional hold; Latin = man in tight pants with his chest out, lady wearing not very much, and a lot of hip movement!
I've decided to add the rest of my list here (with accompanying videos) for your pleasure. Enjoy!
Waltz: Elbow - The Loneliness of a Tower Crane Driver
Viennese waltz: Air - Somewhere Between Waking and Sleeping
Cha-cha-cha: Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Zero
Quickstep: The Doors - LA Woman. If you don't know The Doors Alive, you need to check them out. They're as close as you're gonna get to hearing The Doors live without access to a TARDIS. The singer and drummer have changed from the lineup seen here, but I'm sure they're still great. This was filmed at a gig I was at and you can actually see the back of my head dancing!
Tango: Radiohead - Burn The Witch. As above. If you really want to know, my tango dance on the original list was Band of Skulls - Himalayan. Oh go on then...
Rumba: Chet Baker - My Funny Valentine. I thought this would tie in well with movie week, as it was featured in The Talented Mr Ripley.
Jive: Imelda May - Johnny Got A Boom Boom
Foxtrot: Everything But The Girl or Ella Fitzgerald - Night And Day. It's a hard choice between the versions! Everything But The Girl would be less likely to make me cry, as the Ella version was my grandparents' song. Sadly both of them have died, and they played it at my grandad's funeral.
Paso doble: Rammstein - Mein Teil. This was going to be my Halloween week before Burn The Witch came along.
Sadly the Blogspot video widget doesn't like Rammstein. Find it here.
Samba: The Commodores - Brick House
Salsa: Paul Simon - Late Evening
American Smooth: Madeleine Peyroux - Dance Me to the End of Love
Argentine tango: Gotan Project - Una Musica Brutal
