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Album Review: Yael Naim

BuzzSugar — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 06:30:55 -0700

We can get a taste of Yael Naim's light, pretty vocals pretty much anytime we turn on the TV these days and see that commercial for the MacBook Air, which uses Naim's sweet tune "New Soul." For those of you who want to hear more than just a 30-second snippet of the French-Israeli singer-songwriter, I highly recommend you check out her newly released (in the States, anyway) self-titled album. It is, in a word, lovely.

Her voice has an airy, innocent quality to it, whether she's singing in English, French, or soft, rapid Hebrew. Some of the tracks, like "Paris," consist of simply Naim, a strummed guitar, and a soothing cadence, though there is, of course, also "New Soul," which is more upbeat and utilizes some fun instrumentation. For more about Yael Naim, read more.

"Too Long" is one of my favorites, with a melancholy tinging her sweet voice (which sometimes reminds me of Sarah McLachlan's). Another good one is "7 Baboker," a haunting track that gives a sense of holiness and reverence.

She also covers Britney Spears’ "Toxic" as a twinkly, slowed-down, dreamy tune, not unlike something we'd hear from Bjork. It's not the best song on the album, but it has an endearing quirkiness.

As is the case with most music, this album won't suit every mood. I would recommend it for the stressed-and-need-something-soothing mood. Naim will surely help you out.

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Singer to Watch: Who’s Singing That MacBook Commercial?

BuzzSugar — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 08:30:22 -0800

I have a serious weakness for a pretty, quirky folk song a la Regina Spektor. When done well, songs out of this genre can feel so light and ethereal that you want to sprout wings and fly - or, buy a new laptop.

That’s at least what the folks over at Apple are hoping French-born Israeli singer Yael Naïm's song "New Soul" will inspire you to do, as they've featured it in their new MacBook Air TV spot. Computer or no, the commercial might send you racing to iTunes to get this song and others from Naïm into your library ASAP.

"New Soul," from her self-titled album with songs in French, English, and Hebrew, is incredibly infectious, yet personal. The album has been popular in France since its release in the Fall of last year, and I suspect Apple may have just launched her crossover career. Remind anyone of Feist and the Nano?

To watch Naïm's video for the MacBook tune, and a beautiful live performance covering Britney’s Toxic (seriously!), read more.

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Vampire Diaries "History Repeating": The Good, The Bad and The Bloody

BuzzSugar — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 06:30:00 -0800

Dear The Vampire Diaries, I see your master plan now: it's to bring it every week now. Please continue to do so. Moving on, this week we learned more about Bonnie and her family ties, revealed Damon's master plan, and met the new mysterious, history teacher.

But that's not even half of the amazing things that went down, so to see the good, the bad, and the bloody from this week's episode, just read more.

The Good

Bonnie's talisman/necklace is bringing her nightmares and visions of her ancestor Emily, who we learn was definitely Katherine's handmaiden back in the day. Her appearances are so creepy, but I was kind of digging that the scares were coming from a non-vampire source.
Damon and Stefan's interactions this week are brilliant. The role reversal, where Stefan takes on Damon's persona and Damon mocks Stefan in kind, are priceless. There even seems to be some genuinely affectionate times between the brothers, but was it just Damon's vulnerability/lack of strength due to avoiding human blood?
New characters for this show have tended to be pretty intriguing, and new teacher Alaric Saltzman is no exception. The dreamy Alaric, played by Legally Blonde's Matt Davis, has a shady past (dead wife who was almost certainly murdered) and every sign points to him being a vampire: the sun-protecting ring, the lingering exchange of Jenna not inviting him in. It's almost too obvious. If he is a vamp and not some other supernatural being, then what role does he play? I'm sure he must know the Salvatores.
Gratification! In one episode, we get two mysteries solved: why Damon came back to Mystic Falls and what's up with Emily and her necklace. The master plan - and Damon's reason for return - is Katherine. Specifically, to rouse her from the spell that left her trapped but unharmed (well, relatively unharmed, considering she was already dead) underneath the church 100 plus years ago. It's news to Stefan that Katherine didn't perish in the fire, but that's not the only revelation about her; the boys trade barbs about their last encounters with their shared first love, and they both end up wounded. I think Stefan is lying when he insists that Katherine compelled the brothers into loving her and that it wasn't real; why else would he have come out of hiding to pursue Elena?
One seed-planting I appreciated: The Gilbert family history. You know Jeremy's on the verge of discovering something big. I have my theories.

The Bad

Right about now I feel the need to introduce something I'd like to call Twilight Corner. It'll be where I bring up any glaring similarities The Vampire Diaries has to that other vampire story. This week, it's Stefan leaving Elena, telling her it's for the best. I smirked early on, when Stefan tells Elena that he's backing off from school, that it's the right thing to do; but I pretty much spit my water out at the end of the episode when Stefan tells Elena he's leaving to protect her while they're in the woods. Shades of New Moon! Generally, the show has distinguished itself from Twilight but that's waaay too close for comfort.

The Bloody

Damon swears off drinking human blood in a demonstration of goodwill to Stefan after killing Lexie last week. My my. Damon, showing repentance? What is this crazy fake world coming to? However, he doesn't maintain his new diet for long: he takes a big bite out of a possessed Bonnie after she, as Emily, destroys the amulet and Katherine over the Fells Church ruins.
OK, let's talk past bloody: We got more of the story of the history of Mystic Falls, including what sounds like an epic, ongoing battle between vampires and humans. It was no accident that Katherine was in that church, having been rounded up by the townspeople to be killed. And she wasn't alone; Emily sealed up the whole church, full of other vampires, who potentially could have been freed upon the town this week. Stefan accuses Damon of not wanting to free Katherine out of love, but revenge, rather; he nearly introduces an army of angry, ancient vampires on the ancestors of the people who exterminated them. Personally I think it was a little bit of both for Damon - love and revenge. He almost has his soul mate and a group of allies back in his life.
I'm counting Damon's broken heart as a casualty this week, as cheesy as that sounds. I just can't ignore how wrecked his face looks at the end of the episode. We went from seeing how inhumane Damon is just last week, to being confronted by an emotional man who faces a final loss of love. Ian Somerhalder, you're rocking it.

What did you think of "History Repeating"? Are you disappointed at all that Katherine didn't rise from the grave tonight, along with a crew of her nearest and bloodthirstiest? Do you even believe she's totally gone? And what about Jenna's situation - are both Logan and Alaric out to suck her blood? For more chatting beyond this week, join the Hooked on Vampire Diaries group in the Buzz Community!

Photos courtesy of The CW

What to Download: New Music Today

BuzzSugar — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 15:30:59 -0700

It's Tuesday! I've already given you some picks to beef up your Netflix queue, but now it's time for your iPod. Check out today's new music releases for what you should download.

The birth of new sound: The latest from The Flaming Lips, Embryonic, is the musical equivalent of an acid trip. The band reportedly improvised a lot in the studio, so the entire album feels raw and pretty much all over the place. MGMT joins in on the track Worm Mountain, Karen O lends silly animal noises (yes, really) to I Can Be a Frog, and a mathematician spouts out equation, x=y type stuff on Gemini Syringes. Weird? You bet. Every track is experimental, which means you'll either embrace it for its free-spirited creativity, or write it off as too strange. Either way, it's worth checking out.

Pop culture candy: Hell has frozen over - Jack White is on the 90210 soundtrack. Hey, I'm not knocking TV music - I've already professed my love for it - but I was surprised to see The Raconteurs associated with a CW show. The band lends a wicked guitar riff to the first track Many Shades of Black (featuring soulful singer Adele) to start the album off. The rest of the playlist includes a mix of new offerings from indie artists and more mainstream pop, but my favorites are the sleepy Valium by MuteMath and the Postal Service-ish Sunburn by Owl City.

See one more release when you read more.

Bah-hum-blah: I was pumped when I heard that Bob Dylan was making a holiday album. It may be Halloween time now, but I always love a good carol, and Christmas in the Heart includes 15 of my favorites. But that's where my excitement ended. Dylan's voice will always be uniquely his, but the throaty quality seems out of place here, singing famous ditties like Here Comes Santa Claus. It's almost like your uncle had too many spiked ciders and started caroling. Even so, I'll probably still download I'll Be Home For Christmas or Winter Wonderland just so I'm not a total Scrooge - the proceeds go to the charity Feeding America.

Easy Virtue: Sparkling Cast Can't Help the Center Star

BuzzSugar — Tue, 26 May 2009 09:30:30 -0700

Easy Virtue, a film adaptation of Noel Coward's jazzy 1920s-set play, pits the old traditions of Europe's landowning gentry against the brash modernity that America had come to symbolize. The old guard is represented by a wealthy British family led by the brittle matriarch Mrs. Whittaker (Kristin Scott Thomas). When her son, John Whittaker (Ben Barnes), marries a sexy race car driver named Larita (Jessica Biel) several years his elder, the entire family is thrown into a tizzy.

Once Biel's character arrives at the Whittaker home she's meant to represent a vibrant and mesmerizing new way of doing things that is utterly offensive to this family so steeped in tradition. But alas, Ms. Biel doesn't quite have what it takes to hold down the center of a film like this and the whole endeavor suffers. To see why, read more.

The cast includes the kind of immensely talented actors who can take on the old-fashioned, quick and witty dialogue with one hand tied behind their backs. Biel tries to keep up and at times she succeeds, but most of the time she simply appears to be swimming upstream. As you might expect, Kristin Scott Thomas deliciously inhabits her icy character with ease and delivers each line as a stinging backhanded compliment. Colin Firth plays her long-suffering husband still hurting from memories of war, and delivers an incredibly funny yet soulful performance. Even Ben Barnes, who is handsome but stiff in The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian, displays pizzazz as the prodigal son returning home.

As the movie clicks along, though, more and more is asked of Biel as she navigates the cruel and ruthless landmines set out for her by her new mother-in-law and sisters-in-law, and she's not quite able to rise to the occasion. As the tone shifts in the final act from a comedy of manners to a darker drama, the talented ensemble cast does all it can to prop the movie up, but the center can't hold in the end.

Photos courtesy of Sony Picture Classics