Cover Sundays – Sampha – “Nothing Compares 2 U” – Prince/The Family Cover – Blue Lines Coachella Week

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Atlanta, Basketball, BBC Radio 1, Blue Hurt, Blue Lines, Blue Lines Blog, Blue Lines Coachella Weekend, California, Camille, Coachella, Coachella Festival, Coachella Valley, Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, Cover, Cover Song, Cover Songs, Cover Sundays, Covers, electronic, Eric Leeds, Georgia, Indio, Jellybean Johnson, Jerome Benton, Key Yemaya Walker, Keypsiia, Keypsiia Walker, Keypsiia Yemaya Walker, London, Miko Weaver, Minneapolis, Minnesota, Morden, music, Nothing Compares 2 U, Paisley Park, Paisley Park Studios, Prince, Prince Rogers Nelson, Sacramento, Sampha, Sampha Sisay, SBTRKT, Sinéad O'Connor, Soul, South London, St Paul, Susannah Melvoin, The artist formerly known as Prince, The Family, United Kingdom, Vocals, XL, Young Turks

The manuscript Blue Lines is the fictional coming of age narrative of a young California woman Key Yemaya Walker, and her 2 year growing journey through school, love, and life period piece, written by Kenneth Suffern, Jr., taking place at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill between the years of 1997 – 1998. Loosely based on true events, and experiences during that time, told through the eyes and voice of the main female protagonist, a freshman first attending the school.

Music Mondays – SBTRKT – “TBD”

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2015, 2016, Aaron Jerome, Atlanta, Blue Hurt, Blue Lines, Blue Lines Blog, Blue Lines Work, California, electronic, England, Indie pop, Key Yemaya Walker, Keypsiia, Keypsiia Walker, Keypsiia Yemaya Walker, London, Morden, music, Music Mondays, post-dubstep, Sacramento, Sampha, Save Yourself, SBTRKT, Soul, TBD, United Kingdom, Young Turks

The manuscript Blue Lines is the fictional coming of age narrative of a young California woman Key Yemaya Walker, and her 2 year growing journey through school, love, and life period piece, written by Kenneth Suffern, Jr., taking place at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill between the years of 1997 – 1998. Loosely based on true events, and experiences during that time, told through the eyes and voice of the main female protagonist, a freshman first attending the school.

#FMSPhotoADay – January – Day 10 – Man Made – Gobi Tent at Coachella

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#FMSphotoaday, 2012, Blue Lines, Blue Lines Blog, Cali, California, Coachella, Day 10, Fat Mum Slim, Gobi Tent, Happy, Indio, January, Key Yemaya Walker, Man Made, Photo Challenge, SBTRKT

The manuscript Blue Lines is the fictional coming of age narrative of a young California woman Key Yemaya Walker, and her 2 year growing journey through school, love, and life period piece, written by Kenneth Suffern, Jr., taking place at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill between the years of 1997 – 1998. Loosely based on true events, and experiences during that time, told through the eyes and voice of the main female protagonist, a freshman first attending the school.

New To You Music Sundays – Jessie Ware feat Sampha – “Valentine”

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Adult contemporary, Blue Lines, Blue Lines Blog, Cherrytree, electronic, Future garage, Indie pop, Island, Jessica Lois Ware, Jessie Ware, Key Yemaya Walker, London, music, musician, New To You Music Sundays, PMR, Pop soul, post-dubstep, quiet storm, R&B, Sampha, SBTRKT, Singer-songwriter, sophisti-pop, Synthpop, trip hop, UK garage, United Kingdom, Valentine, Vocals, Young Turks

The manuscript Blue Lines is the fictional coming of age narrative of a young California woman Key Yemaya Walker, and her 2 year growing journey through school, love, and life period piece, written by Kenneth Suffern, Jr., taking place at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill between the years of 1997 – 1998. Loosely based on true events, and experiences during that time, told through the eyes and voice of the main female protagonist, a freshman first attending the school.

Music Mondays – Sampha (known for vocals with SBTRKT) – “Without”

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2012, Blue Lines, Blue Lines Blog, Dual, electronic, Future garage, Indie pop, Key Yemaya Walker, London, music, Music Mondays, post-dubstep, Sampha, SBTRKT, United Kingdom, Without, Young Turks

The manuscript Blue Lines is the fictional coming of age narrative of a young California woman Key Yemaya Walker, and her 2 year growing journey through school, love, and life period piece, written by Kenneth Suffern, Jr., taking place at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill between the years of 1997 – 1998. Loosely based on true events, and experiences during that time, told through the eyes and voice of the main female protagonist, a freshman first attending the school.

Foto Fridays – Best Of 2012 – Music Festivals

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405, 5, Aaron Bruno, adidas, Adidas Superstar, ALLEN STONE, Alternative, Amtrack, ANDREW BIRD, ANIMAL KINGDOM, Atlanta, Avcii, AWOLNATION, Azalea Banks, •ALABAMA SHAKES, •AMADOU & MARIAM, •ANTIBALAS, •BOMBA ESTEREO, •CITY AND COLOUR, •FUN., •JOVANOTTI, •MIMOSA, •OF MONSTERS AND MEN, •SHARON VAN ETTEN, •TAME IMPALA, •THE WALKMEN, •TRAMPLED BY TURTLES, •WASHED OUT, •WOLFGANG GARTNER, •YACHT, BART, Beats By Dre, BECK, Beer Lands, Big Boi, BIG GIGANTIC, BIRDYH, BLOC PARTY, Blue Hurt, Blue Lines, Blue Lines Blog, Blue Lines Coachella Weekend 2012, Bon Iver, Bromance, CA, California, CAVEMAN, Coachella, Coachella 2012, Coachella Valley, Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, Comedy, concert, CORY CHISEL AND THE WANDERING SONS, Dabs Myla, David Grohl, DIE ANTWOORD, DIRTY DOZEN BRASS BAND, DISPATCH, Do Lab, DR. DOG, Dr. Dre, dubstep, Earth Day, ELECTRIC GUEST, Empire Polo Club, End, Explosions In The Sky, FATHER JOHN MISTY, Feist, Festival, FITZ AND THE TANTRUMS, Foo Fighters, Foto Fridays, FRANZ FERDINAND, FUTUREBIRDS, Gary Clark Jr., GEOGRAPHER, Golden Gate, Golden Gate park, GRANDADDY, gravel, Haight Ashbury, Hip-Hop, Hip-Hop Music, iMovie, Indio, INFANTREE, Instagram, Intel Outside, iPhone, iPhone 4S, iPhone Post, iPhone4s, iPhoneagraphy, iPhoneography, JACK WHITE, Jerseys, Jukebox the Ghost, JUSTICE, Key Yemaya Walker, Lands End Stage, Last Time, Little Dragon, Live Music, Los Angeles, Love, Marraige, Marta, Metallica, MICHAEL KIWANUKA, MSTRKRFT, Muni, music, Music Festival, MW, Myla, Myla Watson, National Basketball Association, NBA, NEIL YOUNG & CRAZY HORSE, Norah Jones, Norcal, Northern California, Occupy Coachella, ONE MusicFest, ONEY ISLAND SWAMP BAND, Outside Lambs, Panhandle Stage, PAPA, Park, PASSION PIT, Photography, Portugal. The Man, Proposal, Radiohead, Raise Your Weapon, REBELUTION, REGGIE WATTS, REGINA SPEKTOR, Richmond, Ricky Watts, Roadtrip, rock, Sacramento, San Francisco, San Francisco Outside Lands, San Francisco Outside Lands 2012, Santigold, SBTRKT, SEAN HAYES, Seek Bromance, Shutte, SIGUR ROS, Skrillex, Snoop Dogg, Snoop Doggy Dogg, Socal, Southern California, Stevie Wonder, Straits, Sutro Stage, TANLINES, Tennis, THE BE GOOD TANYAS, The Black Keys, The Grande Wheel, THE KILLS, THE M MACHINE, THEE OH SEES, Tim Berg, TOM MORELLO: THE NIGHTWATCHMAN, Train, Truth, Tupac, Tupac Hologram, Tupac Shakur, Twin Peaks Stage, TWO GALLANTS, UN Square, Vacation, WALLPAPER., Wedding, WHITE DENIM, Wine Lands, YELLOW OSTRICH, ZOLA JESUS

A “Best of… Foto Fridays” Essay of 2012’s Music Festival travels.
2012 Ranking:
1) Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival (Empire Polo Club, Indio, CA)
2) Music Midtown (Piedmont Park, Atlanta, GA)
3) Outside Lands: Music, Food, Wine, Beer, Art (Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, CA)

A combination of Porta-Potties, Hot sun, VIP Showers, compressed hot bodies, cold, fog, band reunions, amazing covers, crowd surfing, 90’s classics, dirt, dubstep, car camping, road trips, bad artist scheduling, vacation, plane flights, MARTA, BART, gravel, fun!
A super-hot weekend in the California desert where NBA Basketball jerseys seemed to be the uniform, water was the best thing, and music was unbelievable. Enjoy.

Coachella Music And Arts Festival, Weekend 2 2012

Overhead view from “The Wheel.”

Alarm Clock…HOT!!!

The weekend’s boarding.

Foto Friday – Coachella Weekend 2, 2012 Photo Essay

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405, 5, Aaron Bruno, Atlanta, Avcii, AWOLNATION, Azalea Banks, Beats By Dre, Blue Hurt, Blue Lines, Blue Lines Blog, Blue Lines Coachella Weekend 2012, Bon Iver, Bromance, California, Coachella, Coachella 2012, Coachella Valley, Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, concert, Do Lab, Dr. Dre, dubstep, Earth Day, Feist, Festival, Gary Clark Jr., Hip-Hop, Hip-Hop Music, iMovie, Indio, Instagram, iPhone 4S, iPhone Post, iPhone4s, iPhoneagraphy, Jerseys, Key Yemaya Walker, Little Dragon, Los Angeles, music, MW, National Basketball Association, NBA, Occupy Coachella, Photography, Radiohead, Raise Your Weapon, Roadtrip, rock, Sacramento, Santigold, SBTRKT, Seek Bromance, Snoop Dogg, Snoop Doggy Dogg, The Black Keys, The Grande Wheel, Tim Berg, Tupac, Tupac Hologram, Tupac Shakur, Vacation

It has been a few weeks, but I finally got around to my Coachella Photo Essay. A few shots, that I still don’t really capture the weekend, but a post nonetheless. A hot weekend where NBA Basketball jerseys seemed to be the uniform. Enjoy.

Coachella Music And Arts Festival, Weekend 2 2012

Overhead view.

Alarm Clock…HOT!!!

The weekend boarding.

Good thing we rode on day one, before standing in long HOT lines.

AWOLNATION Frontman Aaron Bruno literally surfs the croud during a rousing rendition of their hit, “Sail.”

Yeah, that’s reading correctly…a whopping 107 Degrees…whew.

The amazing Gary Clark, Jr. performing “Things Are Changing,” instant zone-out song.


Feist during her powerful set, before Bon Iver.

SBTRKT Killing “Wildfire” with Vocals by Yukimi of Little Dragon and Drake.

Radiohead Destroying It!!!

The Beats By Dre tent, where we listened to bad Pitbulls songs, on great Dre Audio, and got AIR CONDITIONING!!!

The Do Lab, where they played LOUD Dub Step and sprayed you with waterhoses. Skipped that this year.

Everyone had the same idea, hide from sun, charge your phones.

Santigold after a late morning Sun nap.

Tupac Hologram rising to perform with Snoop.

Way to end…on Earth Day.

A beautiful sunrise, a bittersweet reminder of the weekend.

On the Road Home.

The manuscript Blue Lines is the fictional coming of age narrative of a young California woman Key Yemaya Walker, and her 2 year growing journey through school, love, and life period piece, written by Kenneth Suffern, Jr., taking place at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill between the years of 1997 – 1998. Loosely based on true events, and experiences during that time, told through the eyes and voice of the main female protagonist, a freshman first attending the school.

What I Learned Sundays 4/29/2012 – Interruptions, Family, Coachella…

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2Pac, Atlanta, Blue Hurt, Blue Lines, Blue Lines Blog, Blue Lines Coachella Weekend 2012, Bon Iver, California, Coachella, Coachella 2012, Coachella Valley, Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, Desert, Dr. Dre, emotions, Feist, Georgia, Hot, Indio, Key Yemaya Walker, Little Black Submarines, Los Angeles, Love, MW, Myla, Photography, Pinks Hot Dogs, Radiohead, Sacramento, SBTRKT, Skinny Love, Snoop Dogg, Snoop Doggy Dogg, The Black Keys, Tupac, Tupac Shakur, UNC Chapel Hill, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Warren G, What I Learned Sundays

This is a post that had been postponed be real events in real life for quite some weeks. Planned previously, but life changed that. Losing (figuratively) a loved family member, and regaining them back. Communication is key, along with understanding who we are as people.

I stood there, singing along to Bon Iver’s “Skinny Love,” feeling things that I shouldn’t have. A song that should have stood alone, and again, like always, I knew…something. The dark night engulfed me (us)…and the world became more real, as it always will.

Coachella Good, Bad and Ugly:
– Amazed to go to my first Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.
– The design allows for some music to cannibalize the artists (ie During The Black Keys, Explosions In The Sky’s set flooded the lower volume sets and breaks between music.)
– The artist selection was amazing.
– Sharing the experience was great, especially since I planned to go solo.
– Camping was an experience within itself, though I was told, “This isn’t real camping.” I’ll accept that.

New To You Music Sundays – This Should Be In Your Playlist – SBTRKT (posted from iPad)

Tags

Aaron Jerome, Basement Jaxx, Blue Lines, Hold On, iPad, ITunes Live Festival, Key Yemaya Walker, Little Dragon, London, N.A.S.A., Sampha, SBTRKT, Wildfire, Young Turks, Yukimi Nagano

Thanks to Little Dragon, and a delayed realization that their single with Yukimi of LD, was in my “Recently Added,” folder, I began to try to listen to their work.

Though, unfair to categorize these artists with N.A.S.A and Basement Jaxx, SBTRKT (Aaron Jerome) employ the same faceless artist concept, however they employ significantly less appearances by other artists. Supported primarily by Sampha on vocals and to a lesser extent relying artists on the affiliated Young Turks label, for support.

I was finally sold after their iTunes Live Festival in London performance, and had to more of their music. Opening the album with “Heatwave,” a wordless starter that cements that as something new and fresh. Followed by the similarly infectious “Hold On,” anchored by:

“…you’re giving me the coldest stare,
Like you don’t even know I’m here…”

It easily pulls you in, however convincing you that they have a distinct sound. Then comes the game changer as the Yukimi Nagano (Little Dragon) powered “Wildfire,” opens the door to the remaining 8 Tracks that follow.

Sampha continues to shine on “Something Goes Right,” and “Trials Of The Past,” giving this electronically album more of an classic (read not today’s sex and pop driven R&B) R&B and downbeat feel.

Highlights: the aforementioned “Hold On,” the Yukimi fueled “Widfire,” “Pharoahs,” and “Heatwave.”

The manuscript Blue Lines is the fictional coming of age narrative of a young California woman Key Yemaya Walker, and her 2 year growing journey through school, love, and life period piece, written by Kenneth Suffern, Jr., taking place at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill between the years of 1997 – 1998. Loosely based on true events, and experiences during that time, told through the eyes and voice of the main female protagonist, a freshman first attending the school.

What I Learned Sundays – Children and Adults

Tags

Adele, Andy Allo, Blue Hurt, Blue Lines, Blue Lines Blog, Blue Lines Chapter 13: Beauty In Blue And White, Bon Iver, Chapter 13: Beauty In Blue And White, Coker Arboretum, Coldplay, Cuba, facebook, Foo Fighters, History, iTunes, Jill Scott, Key Yemaya Walker, Keypsiia, Keypsiia Walker, Lineage, Linkin Park, Martina Topley-Bird, Myla, Myla Watson, Nintin Sawhney, Philips Arena, Prince, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Sade, SBTRKT, Songify, Spain, What I Learned Sundays, YOU

Opening with a very brief excerpt from Blue Lines Chapter 13: Beauty In Blue And White. (currently page 135)

“Blue closed his eyes, and she understood that he knew the truth in her simple words. Exhaling, he looked toward the idyllic hues of the orange and red leaves that still hung on to the last life of the fleeting summer. He knew that on the eve of their passing, a virgin love was being born between to souls who were occupying the right space at the perfect time. With Keypsiia’s girlish grin still wide, she closed her eyes and looked skyward to accept the warmth of the sun that seemed to caress her. She smiled at the emancipation of her words, and with thoughts of the frightening, unknown love that separated them from the world now.”

Looking back at these moments between these two semi-fictional characters, an 18 year old young woman, and 20 year old young man, the innocence of this time is apparent. Both lacking in experience, and idealistic in what the future holds, and in this instance, what it holds, insofar as “love,” their “love.” A “love,” not yet spoiled by bad decisions, broken and devastated hearts, realizations that these concepts that we believe at this young age, have the opportunity to be proved wrong. “Love…” these are also the transcribed words of a young man, still in that age at that time, far different from thoughts, beliefs, and knowledge now. The problem is, when at this age you a) don’t know the difference of what you “knew” then, but learned along your travels; and b) fail to take heed of the now, versus the then.

When you look at life/events/etc., many things happen for a reason, finding that reason is a challenge in the process. What do I mean by that, well let me first preface, this post has had many directions, however working the weekend, opened a few directions, while challenging my focus in writing this post. To regain my focus, I notice repetition, I notice new experiences, and I notice the past, now repetition continues, as unhealthy as it is, new has reared its beautiful head again.

I will start with the most interesting tidbits that I learned this week. Through facebook, twitter, BlackBerry messenger, twitter, my dealings with YOU etc. my cousin and I have grown extremely close. I’ve never really thought to look into my Cuban and Latin heritage, because it is basically clearcut…or more clear-cut. I found out that my maternal great-grandparents were a Cuban and a Spaniard. A revelation that makes me look in the mirror very differently, as a Hispanic, a Caribbean Cuban Hispanic, Spaniards are looked in a certain light, and to discover that I have Spanish heritage not through rape, pillage, but an actual marriage, and that my family roots on one of the Hispanic sides cleanly reach back to Spain. I hope this statement is understood, cleanly meaning that I have something tangible that I can trace. As a Cuban, I luckily can trace my roots through Cuban and back to Africa in some respect, now this adds a layer to added family knowledge. Cuzzo, we should have the first Family Reunion in Spain, that would be a shocker!!!