Music Monday: for the Soldiers

Today isn't November 11th. In fact, Remembrance Day isn't until the end of the week. But that doesn't matter. We've set aside that day to remember our fallen, but our memories and silence are just as potent any other day of the week or year.

A brief introduction to the artist, Shawn Hlookoff. He's a rising British Columbian talent who came to international attention with the release of this song. I remember discovering him as an artist through the local newspaper, and then watching him perform on the Legislature lawn for BC Day celebrations.

It's strange not being in Canada right now, not only because of the seasonal lack I rambled about earlier, but because I have yet to see one of those ubiquitous red poppy pins. Those are another mark of the autumn season, one that, though welcome, is always bittersweet to see.

I don't really want to say much in this post, so I'll leave you with the video below. I hope everyone's celebrations this week go well, and that this song is made meaningful.

Fall Ramblings

I miss autumn.

I want to wear pants and sleeves, I want to put on a toque and a jacket, I want to shiver in the line for Tim Hortons coffee or hocho. The lack of a cool season here is leaving me very confused; I've been here more than three months but it still feels like summer. The weather is still warm, the beach still beckons, and the sole jacket I brought (more of a windbreaker, really) sits unused in my modest closet.

I'm trying to cope, though, to trick myself into believing that it really is fall. I've switched out playlists, swapping the club beats, remixes, mashups, and electropop anthems with more fitting musical offerings of jazz, acoustic, and stripped down vocal performances. It's not Music Monday yet, but I'm gonna go ahead and say that this new list heavily features KT Tunstall, Jamie Cullum, Melody Gardot, and Kings of Convenience. Give 'em all a look, although each will likely make an appearance in the MM posts within the next few months.

Despite my longing for autumn months back home, I'm rather disappointed that I have to leave Singapore so soon. I've only got six more weeks here, three of which will be spent travelling. There's just so much I haven't done yet that I want to fit in: the Singapore Flyer, Marina Barrage, Henderson Wave, East Coast Park, Pulau Ubin. And then there's all the travel I want to do as well. Guess I'll have to come back to Southeast Asia in a few years, eh?

images by masochismtango, blmier2, and Blakkos