New Music Obsession: ICONA POP

Good Monday my fellow music listeners. The sun has taken a sabbatical for a short time, but my sunny disposition is still in tact due to hot tunes pumping through my speakers!!!

This week's new music obsession thats keeping me in sunny spirits....ICONA POP. Caroline Hjelt and Aino Jawo are the latest in a long line of Swedish acts hoping to make an impact in the electro dance community. The pair met at a house party in Stockholm in 2009 where they drunkenly agreed that they should make music together. "I was forced to go to her party," says Aino, "I'd been dumped and was lying in a bed for two weeks. So I went to the party, we were introduced and started to talk. We kind of fell in love." The drunken promise then turned into a reality. Caroline says: "[Aino] then called me the next day and I was nervous about meeting up again, maybe it had only been the alcohol talking the night before."

Fans of Robyn, Niki & The Dove, and La Roux will especially enjoy this duo. A little punk rock, a lot of dance, and lots of lady sass. I am absolutely in love with this band. Listening to ICONA POP leaves me with thoughts of colored skinny jeans, bright lipstick , medallions, break ups and make ups, and a fabulous night out on the town.

I know you will enjoy my two favorite songs from this dance powerhouse duo "Manners" and "I Love It". Thats all for this week folks. Tune back in next week for another new music obsession; until then keep listening!

xoxoxo Najamoniq "Music washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life." ~Berthold Auerbach

New Music Mondays.....Chad Valley

Happy sunny Monday music folks. It's sunny, and I'm dying to bathe in all those lovely rays so this will be a short one.

Beautiful trance dance newbie CHAD VALLEY is this weeks New Music Obsession. It is hard for me to put into words what Mr. Manuel (CHAD VALLEY) does for chillwave, a music genre made popular in 2008. If I could use just one phrase about him and his music it would be, "Let one long chillwave of luxurious sound after another wash over you, courtesy of one-man musicgasm Hugo Manuel."

Hugo began in the band Jonquil, although he still plays with them he is also giving more focus to his solo project, CHAD VALLEY. I love the delicate yet moving quality to Hugo's music. Maybe because there’s just one of him, he is able to give the project greater focus; there is no dilution, or sense of boxes being ticked with Chad Valley – it’s just one idea gloriously stretched out over four tracks on his sublime self-titled debut EP.

This music is so good I'm sharing two videos from Chad Valley. Please enjoy song #1 "Reach Lines" and #2, my most favorite song by Chad Valley, "Anything." See you next monday with my new music obsession - until then enjoy the sun!
xoxoxo Najamoniq “The only truth is music.” ― Jack Kerouac

Inspiration

I get asked where some of my inspiration comes from. I get a lot from visiting one of the many local shops here in Tacoma; so many to choose from: Megs N Mo, Vintage, Nine Lives, Orange, London Couture - just to name a few. But, I also find inspiration and great ideas from the blog "sincerely, jules."

Julie Sarinana is a Los Angeles based blogger whose style is fashion forward. Here's what whowhatwear.com has to say about her:

While it's obvious Sarinana is an easygoing Southern California girl through and through, we have to applaud the fact that our stalkee upholds a polished aesthetic with every look. For example, the brunette beauty seamlessly balances relaxed silhouettes (billowy blouses and loose-fitting tees) with sleek pieces (skinny cargos and tailored trousers) for a fresh, uncomplicated outcome. Sarinana's affinity for vivid colors and of-the-moment patterns is not lost on us either. In fact, we loved the way she expertly combined the two via a bright coral blazer and graphic-print pants, as the result was sophisticated, youthful, and right on-trend for spring. Clothing aside, Sarinana clearly has a knack for sleuthing covetable accessories too, as demonstrated by her drool-inducing ankle boots, versatile drawstring bag, and armful of chic bracelets!


So, go check out her blog and get inspired!

Wishing you all a happy week!

Coco Blackwell

Zombie Prom: Girls Like Boys for Their Brains

The Rainier Roller Girls invite the living and the undead to skate the night away at Zombie Prom, May 12, 2012 at Southgate Roller Rink.

The Junior Prom is from 7:30 pm to 9:30 pm and tickets are $10 - this is an all ages event! Senior Prom is 18 and older and is from 10 pm to Midnight - tickets are $12. All night passes, for those 18 and older are $18.

The Daymakers will be on hand to do ghoulish hair and makeup, for free. So go early and have a Daymaker make your night.

More information is available on the Facebook page for the event. https://www.facebook.com/events/301408036593979/

New Music Mondays.......Penguin Prision

Good Monday to everyone. Here we are at the beginning of another work week and since nature has decided to bless us with some sunshine in our lives, here is some sunshine for your ears.

New band obsession Penguin Prison; it's jazz, it's disco, it's dance, it's electronic, and it's damn good. Hailing from good old NYC, I cannot get enough of the 2011 self titled album "Penguin Prison." Comprised of Chris Glover, a producer, multi-instrumentalist, and vocalist, Penguin Prison is often compared to contemporary electro-pop acts such as Hot Chip, LCD Soundsystem, and Mike Snow.

Penguin Prison first rose to prominence with a college band called “The Smartest People at Bard," whose demos came to the attention of Q-Tip and, through him, Interscope. A solo album for the Universal label followed in 2009 but didn't attract attention. In the same year Glover left, did a little reinventing and took up the new name Penguin Prison and began gaining recognition with remixes for Goldfrapp, Passion Pit, Marina & the Diamonds ("I Am Not a Robot"), Sébastien Tellier ("Fingers of Steel"), Erik Hassle ("Hurtful"), and others.

As a live act, Penguin Prison is a trio comprised of Conrad Stern-Ascher on synthesizers and Ernesto Karolys on drums, in addition to Glover on vocals and guitar. This album has tempo and flow for every type of music listener, and I know you will enjoy my favorite track on their 2011 album, "Something I'm Not". See you music lovers next week!!

xoxoxoxo Najamoniq “Life is for the living. Death is for the dead. Let life be like music. And death a note unsaid.” ― Langston Hughes, The Collected Poems

New Music Mondays......Noisettes

Good Monday fellow music lovers. Najamoniq in the house again with a new band (kinda) obsession, The Noisettes.

Folks, first off I highly recommend this amazing band as they have been a favorite of mine for years. Noisettes consist of Shingai Shoniwa, Dan Smith,and Jamie Morrison. The band formed in 2003 when guitarist Smith and singer Shoniwa were attending the BRIT School for Performing Arts and Technology in Croydon. Both had previously been in the band Sonarfly. Drummer Morrison (formerly of Living With Eating Disorders, Willis, Six Toes, Jaywalk Buzz, Loden Jumbo and others) was recruited after Smith saw him performing with Willis, on the UK television show "Later - with Jools Holland."

The Noisettes quickly formed a reputation for being one of the rowdiest live acts in London. I love the sense of community and diversity this band exudes; they are both creative and cutting edge. "Some bands stick with the same style forever,” says singer Shingai Shoniwa, whose versatile vocals are remenicient of Deborah Harry, Kate Bush, Billie Holiday, and Diana Ross. “They get together because they share identical musical tastes, then never do anything different. We’re a gang, but we’re also two divas with different record collections who constantly introduce each other to new sounds, whether it’s African music, jazz, our own modern hybrid of soul music or new adventures in dance music. There always remains the spirit of rock ‘n’ roll without the clichés. For us, making music means keeping our ears open.” This especially touched my heart as my best friend and I share the exact same relationship.

,So do yourself a huge favor and take a minute to check out this fun and innovatve trio. Enjoy this video of one of my favorite Noisettes tracks, "Sister Rosetta." I will see all of you next week with an all new music obsession!!!
xoxoxoxo Najamoniq

"Music is forever; music should grow and mature with you, following you right on up until you die." ~Paul Simon