May 28, 2008

Another fantastic live performer — Jason Mraz

Posted in Music tagged , , , , , , , , at 8:38 am by myrlinn

It popped back into my mind yesterday that Jason Mraz has a new CD out:  We Sing, We Dance, We Steal Things. In all the excitement over Clay’s CD, I’d quite put that on the backburner.

So, last night, I listened again to my Tonight Not Again: Jason Mraz Live At the Eagle’s Ballroom CD again.

And was reminded again of how absolutely amazing he was when I went to see him what, two, maybe three years ago (haha, very precise, right?) when he performed an acoustic set here in Singapore — at the Mosaic Music Festival.  Before the concert, I already liked his quirky way with lyrics and rhythm, but watching him live underscores that he can really sing as well.

He just stood there with his guitar and sang, and had the entire audience hanging onto every note. I think what it was was that he seemed in thrall with his music, and thus we were enthralled too.

I wonder when he’ll be coming by this way again…

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Music Video – “I’m Yours” (Track 2 on We Sing, We Dance, We Steal Things)

April 8, 2008

A Tale of Two Music Videos

Posted in Music tagged , , , , , , , , , at 7:57 am by myrlinn

I tread through so much of life taking the middle path that it’s pretty unusual for me to LOVE (or HATE) something at first sight. Yet, this is what happened to me twice in the past week.

I came across Jon Peter Lewis’s music video for “Break the Silence”. Immediately hated it.
(Watch the “Break the Silence” music video on Youtube here)

On the other extreme, Josh Gracin’s music video for “We Weren’t Crazy”“… love it!
(Watch the “We Weren’t Crazy” music video on Youtube here)

I think a big part of my strong reaction to JPL’s music video comes from the fact that I actually love the song. “Break the Silence” is catchy pop while still having some maturity in sound. And I like the way the lyrics are put together on this song. BUT the music video is so safe, so formulaic, so cliched, that it sucked the soul out of the song. And the charmingly offbeat, intelligent personality we saw on Idol? Virtually no sign of it anywhere in the video (except perhaps in the short clips of him playing a guitar).

Josh Gracin’s video for “We Weren’t Crazy”, on the other hand, conveyed where the heart of the man lies. Early clips of him and his family were very skilfully weaved into the video, telling the story without slipping into the maudlin or the cheesy. This video definitely made a song that I was in like (not love) with seem so much more meaningful, and more enjoyable to listen to.

On the plus side for both videos: both guys are certainly looking great these days 🙂