The one hundred and eighty-third TV show: #497 Tous les Garcons et les Filles de Leur Age
Out of the shows we've covered, it feels like this one is one that had the longest journey for how much we watched of it. More a collection of short films with a single subject, it features the stories of different teens in different decades. Having watched three, it feels like the movies ahve some themes in common beyond the intentional - the way your own problems feel so much bigger at that age, dominating the world for you, and hwo life can feel more superficial. There's those elements of selfishness and lack of perspective, trying to be deep and failing beyond that superficial level. It's interesitng as a way of looking at it, but it has that new wave touch (even if it goes against it) that makes it harder to connect with watching now. They're interesting pieces that I'm glad I have seen, but I don't feel the need to dive deep trying to hunt down subtitled versions of others.
The four hundred and twenty-fourth album: #424 X-Ray Spex - Germfree Adolescents
X-Ray Spex's only album in its original form produces a number of memorable riffs with some decent songs built on top of that. Lyrically not the most engaging - they're often drowned out by the guitars - but enough comes through that you can shout/sing along with an approximation of the lyrics. It's aggressive and enjoyable, the fun parts of punk without feeling as political, going hard but not filled with anger. It feels like just listening to the album is cathartic in its own right.
The four hundred and twenty-third album: #423 Chic - C'est Chic
With the transformation from funk to disco, my tolerance for the music styles is increasing. I still don't get much out of the long dance breaks, but the songs are good to listen to, songs like Freak Out are classics for a reason and I enjoyed most of the album - or got in a comfortable groove when it wasn't trying to engage me as much lyrically. There are stand outs for a reason, but it's all put together well.
The one hundred and fifty-first classical recording: #353 Franz Liszt - A Faust Symphony
Putting interpretations of the meaning of the different movements aside - Wikipedia has you covered on that - Liszt's Faust Symphony is a work of contrasts and combatting music. The first movement is a bombastic piece, fitting in with what you expect of the bigger orchestras and fitting with Faust's general persona. It's followed by a slightly shorter, more gentle movement that represents Gretchen, the love interest. It jumps to Mephistopheles' chaotic third movement, an aggressive piece occasionally interrupted by Gretchen's unwavering, gentle theme. It's a story that doesn't come through until the symphony's final movement, but it tells its basic story so well that it becomes a pay off even without fully looking at the story behind the work.
The four hundred and twenty-second album: #422 Willie Nelson - Stardust
As the concept of this album - adapting American classics - is different enough from the earlier album, it's hard to draw a comparison between the albums I've covered. What we get here are familiar songs, leading off with the title track Stardust but moving to a more maudlin, impressive rendition of Blue Skies that changes just enough to be different without entirely losing the job. It's a balancing act that becomes quite interesting to follow, with the focus mostly on a slower, somewhat sadder interpretation of the existing songs. It's just so well done, the music sounds good, the new arrangements work incredibly well and it feels easy to just breeze through the album, taking it in in one go.
The four hundred and twenty-first album: #421 Marvin Gaye - Here, My Dear
It feels a bit invasive to listen to Here, My Dear. The album is about Marvin Gaye's first divorce, an acrimonious event that clearly left a negative impact on him at the time. The soulful album, adding in funk and jazz tracks but generally feeling that bit lower, doesn't entirely work if it's meant to invoke sympathy, but as an insight into the man's mind at the time it does lay it all bare.
I'm not sure whether the 70 minute runtime is all warranted - the lengthy funk runtimes of some of the tracks are more than what I need in places - but the core message is more effective. It's probably what couches the intrusive nature most - there is the fluff around it that separates you that bit more from the core message.
The one hundred and fiftieth classical recording: #637 Bela Bartok - Romanian Folk Dances
This short piece adapts six Romanian folk dances to classical music, adding instrumentation where appropriate, but keeping the focus on the one instrument that would normally be leading the dance - a flute that's mostly on its own, a violin slowly supported by other string instruments and so on. It feels like it keeps the origin of the songs as a folk dance, something anyone could play, but adds atmosphere around it to help create a feeling that puts you in that time and place. It's over all too quickly, but helps keep you engaged until then.