Enigmatic

I'm Daniel. A Cynical narcissist with Buddhist views pretentiously studying Journalism.

Last Week…

So, last week was a really great one. Primarily it has to be said because of the absolutely wonderful weather we had. 

Last Monday I finished my first year at university. Quite honestly, I just cannot believe how quickly it went. It really just flew by quicker than I’d ever imagined it would have. But, I’m pretty glad it’s over. I enjoy it but it’s quite nice to have a break and focus on other things in life for a while. Which, I guess is one of the great things about university.

On Tuesday I ticked off something from my ‘To Do List’, I went to Manchester for the first time. (I’ve been before, but never actually into the city centre.) I loved it. I genuinely loved it. When I first arrived I was a bit iffy about the place, but as I walked around I began to really love it. I would describe it as a smaller London, it just has that look to it that Birmingham doesn’t quite have.

I’m pleased that I like cities and towns, because I know a lot of people tend to like either one or the other but I love the vibrancy of cities, but I equally love the calmness and serene nature of towns and small towns.

Also, I bought a ukulele. It was an impulse buy. Initially I wanted a guitar, but I thought unlike a lot of people who want to learn instruments, it’s not at all my plan to become a musician, I just want to have fun and learn a few songs. So, after some wild Googling I decided a ukulele would be the best bet… I’m getting there it’s fair to say. I’m not great at it yet, but I’ve only been playing a few days and I’m not awful. It’s definitely something I will work on.

Friday I met up with friends and just relaxed in the sun, that was lovely and on Saturday I went to work and had a pretty decent day as well.

Sunday I went to the beach in Barmouth. Amazing day. Again, it was something new for me. I was lucky enough as a child to go on quite a lot of holidays abroad and because of that I’d never actually properly ‘been’ to the beach in the UK. But it was really lovely. I went with my two friends and we had a brilliant time. I’m 100% looking forward to our upcoming camping trip this Summer.

Well that’s that for now. Fortunately the nice weather seems to have carried on into this week (So far) and I just hope it stays this way.

Ciao for now!

Keaton Henson - You Don’t Know How Lucky You Are.

Just generally a beautiful song from an excellent lyricist. (I also envy his beard.)

Not a huge fan of Grease as a film/musical, and neither was I a huge fan of the music. But I heard this cover on an advert and instantly loved it. This just proves that almost anything could sound good if sang well. 

Angus & Julia Stone - You’re the one that I want.

Saying no to saying no.

I was walking along the other day and I realised just how much I say that I’ll never do things.

I’m forever saying I’ll never get married and I’ll never have children. I probably won’t, but saying definitely that I won’t as I always do I realise makes me a hypocrite. I like to think I’m quite a liberal person, but by saying I’ll never do something is actually the complete opposite. It’s putting myself in metaphorical chains.

And the reality is, a lot of things in the past I’ve said I’ll never do or will never like I have done or I now do like.

So I’ve come to the conclusion. I’m going to stop saying no. Maybe one day I’ll put rap music on my iPod. Maybe one day I will eat snails. Maybe one day I will get married. Maybe one day I will have children. 

And you know what?

Maybe I’ll like it.

Skin - Update

Today was the day I went to see the dermatologist. Although I was quite excited about it, I was also very apprehensive. 

The dermatologist I saw was an extremely nice man and took a genuine interest in me as a person and my acne which made me feel a lot more comfortable. As many of you know by now I’ve suffered with acne since I was 14 and today was the first time a medical professional asked me how my acne impacted on me mentally and emotionally.

It didn’t take me by surprise, I was expecting it. So I told him as honestly as I could articulate. A few years ago that would have upset me, but I’ve reached a stage where I’m happy to discuss it.

To cut what could be a long story short, he is going to put me on Roaccutane which as I have explained before is the ‘ultimate’ acne treatment. He explained it to me like this: There are four stages to curing acne and most acne medication only cures one or two of those stages. Roaccutane is the only acne medication that cures all four stages. It has a 90% chance of curing my acne forever and there is only a 7% chance it will return.

Words can’t really explain how this makes me feel. It’s stil sinking in that soon I could have clear skin.

However, as I already knew there are side effects and potentially severe ones at that. He went through most of them with me but obviously I’d already researched the drug so I knew all about them. I’ll be on the course of medication for around four months and I’m probably not going to feel very well during this time physically and quite possibly mentally. I’ll admit, it is off putting. But if it means the end of my acne it’s something I am certainly willing to put up with and I’m lucky to have people around me who have supported me throughout the years I’ve suffered and will continue to do so.

Next Friday I have blood tests and then providing all is well I will begin the medication within the following week.

Taking that first pill will be strange because it could be the start of the end to something that’s had huge impacts on my life for a long time.

I’m both hopeful and optimistic about this treatment, but at the same time I realise the journey’s not over yet and the next few months could be very difficult and trying.

Ciao.

Electra Heart (Deluxe Edition)

Electra Heart has been long awaited. Fans have been teased for months with videos and free tracks from the album, but finally it’s arrived.

I bought the deluxe edition via download at £10.99 which includes 16 tracks and two music videos, which for a modern album I was very pleased with.

The album begins with a classic Marina, almost child like sounding track called Bubblegum Bitch with lyrics like: “I’m miss sugar pink liquor, liquor lips, I’m going to be your bubblegum bitch.” It’s the shortest track on record and is a good starting place to get you in the mood for what is a very generously long album.

After her previous album “The Family Jewels” which was very unique and had wonderfully simple but at the same time strangely powerful lyrics, I was hesitant about Marina’s second release. Often with popularity comes generic pop songs. However, I was pleased to discover this was far from true on Electra Heart. One of the clear differences between the two albums for me was money. Unlike Marina’s first album which was created with a low budget, Electra Heart had a higher budget which has paid off.

Marina said herself this album is more about love, which is I always find off putting as love is a muse almost all artists like to experiment with, usually with very similar outcomes. But, I was naive to think Marina would sing soppy songs. The album is very much focused around being a teenager in love, and how we grow up to realise how stupid we’ve been.

Something that’s noticeable throughout Electra Heart is Marina’s ability to sing about topics such as virginity and sex, but in ways we don’t often hear in music. “I wanna be a virgin pure, a 21st century whore, I want my back my virginity, so I can feel infinity.” She sings in Teen Idle, a track very much focused around the trials of being a teen and more potently in Sex Yeah - “Nothing is provocative anymore, even for kids, no room for imagining because everyone’s seen everything” Her ability to be opinionated through what could only be described as a pop album is one of Marina’s unique traits.

After her debut album which was in the majority very fast paced from start to finish, in Marina’s second album the mood is very bipolar. Going from tracks such as Fear & Loathing, which is six minutes of slow ‘album track’ music, with very melodramatic lyrics to Radioactive which is a very upbeat chart friendly track. I like this as it shows her range of ability, but if you’re in the mood to party, you’ll have to stay sober enough to be able to skip through the slower tracks on the album.

Marina & The Diamonds has once again created an astounding album that will remain on mine and I’m sure many other people’s iPods for years to come. Her lyrics and unusual voice are still as prominent as ever and as a Brit it’s refreshing to see a British artist doing so well that hasn’t been produced by a talent show.

For more of my writing check out my blog 500 Words or Less:

http://500-wol.blogspot.co.uk/

Paloma Faith - Picking Up The Pieces. When I first heard this song I didn’t like it. I loved her first album immensely. However, after giving it a second listen I now really like it. In my opinion Paloma Faith is an amazing vocalist and one of Britain’s finest artists at the moment. I look forward to her new album!

I love Lissie as an artist. After having watched this video interview with her in London, I now really like her as a person too.