Oil paint in water

The night before Christmas

We're descending towards Kastrup and the sky is a wonderfully enlightening shade of misty crimson that seems to dance on into all eternity. IF I could choose a moment to be stuck in for all of time, it would probably be this one, high above the curious white patchwork of clouds a few hundred feet below me looking at the glistening aluminum wings of the plane on the first day after the winter solstice. I don't care about what lies beneath the clouds but still it interests me as I sit here feeling the force of the plane descending, that beautiful feeling of free fall that is so wholeheartedly unfamiliar yet so indescribably elating. It seems as if we're flying into the pink / crimson horizon, as if in a flash we'll be on the other side of a new and utterly different world of warmth and colour. And even as the crimson fades and its beauty is relegated to static vibrations that linger ever so daintily, I still love this place, and these fleeting colours before me, and I wish that everyone around me could feel what I feel, for all eternity

The construction of Morality

I'm not an advocate of atheism as such, but if I had to choose between a reserved atheist who remains indifferent to religion and a religious fanatic, I do believe logic could make the choice for me without me having to think that much. In a world where one country prays for the downfall of another, through one religious standpoint or other, it is evident that someone is inevitably going to be disappointed..Could it be, as Carlin says, everybody ?  Religion in this case can represent anything from the fundamentalism that the conservative Bible states in The U.S advocate for or the insanity that drives terrorists to all the heinous acts they commit all over the place to the capitalist and materialist sensastionalisation that created Santa and the crisis in which we're in. So in theory, nation of atheists capable of independent critical thought would probably be a lot better than a bunch of religious fundamentalists who do what they are told without question, irrespective of whether doing so is morally sound.

The Best Concerts of 2011

2011 was not just about about crises and recessions, doom and gloom. Musically, there were a lot more exciting developments taking place. Distortion was colossal even though it posted a huge loss financially, Roskilde was a haven for the underdog, as the high rollers failed to live up to the ruckus caused by smaller names at the venue and Vega continued to play host to decent live acts throughout the year.

Here are The Copenhagen Posts' In and Out teams' picks of 2011. (Mine included)

(Click here) 

James Blake : The Soft-spoken beat genius, Blake managed to win quite a few hearts at Roskilde with his critically acclaimed performance.



Band of Horses: Provided a fair deal of warmth in the midst of a cold winter with their show at the barnd spanking new Tap1 venue back in Feb.



When Saints Go Machine : Unleashed a new album that's starbound as things stand, and followed through with a solid performance at Vega. Lead singer Jonas Kenton's solo project Kenton Slash Demon is also listed in our In Out  favourites.

Cuatro Torres / Plaza De La Castellana

2 days before the winter solstice, Madrid, Spain. The sun is high and distant, bathing the glass shards before me in a piercing hue of white, like a pair of sharp scissors cutting through frail crepe paper. I felt relegated to the real of the infinitesimal as I stood and glared upwards at 250m of shimmering glass. 

Inspiration (listen as you glance) 

From Madrid. En directo

I'm back in Madrid after almost 2 years and boy does it feel great to be here again. Everywhere I go, there's extensive talk of the crisis and a lingering wave of uncertainty hangs menacingly in the air.  In spite of this, Madrid is still Madrid, a pulsating colossus of life and energy, and a welcome change to the cold, wind-swept Nordic winter. It's lovely to see and feel the sun again !


Cuatro Torres / Plaza De La Castellena I

Cuatro Torres / Plaza De La Castellena II

La Plaza mayor : A haven for tricksters and street artists

Sun-soaked leaves by La Catedral de Santa María la Real de la Almudena

La Catedral de Santa María la Real de la Almudena

The Royal Palace

Christmas market, somewhere near La Plaza Mayor: Madrid has trimmed the lighting expenses this year, but still looks like a well decorated Christmas tree for the most part.

Madrid by night: Weaving in and out of the busy streets by scooter is by far the best way to really experience this city.

Lamplit Orange

Burnt orange in winter 

And the smell of smoking embers

The kiss of a cool mountain  breeze 

And the sound of a rose petal falling through the air 

Or the purr of a cat content on velvet feet

The dance of a moonlit shadow in the wind 

Or the simple stroke of a brush upon the canvas of life 

These are few of life's endearing things. 

Scarlet Ricochet 

(From the song above)

An old man said
"Live one day at a time
Who can add a day to his life by worrying?"

Though we're young
We've seen what worry can do
So embrace the worried songs we sing to you

So mournful the elegy
And so comforting the hymn
So mournful the elegy
And so comforting the hymn

On the road with the Raveonettes

The mind of an artist is a complex and intricate place that sometimes doesn't gets well and truly explored through his or her art.

Here's a video about the Raveonettes and the creative process behind their latest album, told in the narrative of band member Sharin Foo, a short clip that delves into the thoughts and sentiments of Denmark's shoegazing darlings.

I Culture, You Culture, We Culture

Collaborative Culture Through Art

In a world dominated by technological expressionism, the role of craftsmanship and traditional manual skills has been somewhat relegated to the background.... Let's go back to the primordial.


I, CULTURE serves as both a flagship project and the catchphrase for the cultural programme of the 2011 Polish Presidency of the EU Council propelled by the initiative of the Adam Mickiewicz Institute


The recently concluded initiative saw over 260 volunteers across 12 capitals all over the world hold creative workshops that posed fundamental questions as to the role of crafts and manual skills in contemporary civilisation where technological development has somewhat overshadowed more traditional forms of expression. Fashion designer and artist Monika Jakubiak was at the helm of the project which aimed at meeting with various artists, hearing their ideas relating to exhibitions and projects in their country of residence and helping turn these ideas into reality through dialogue and creative exchange.


The I, CULTURE Contemporary Craft project aims to create an awareness of each person's relationship and active engagement in culture, especially those who do not work in any artistic profession. Over the 6-month term of the Polish Presidency of the project, participants from the 12 different cities (Berlin, Brussels, Kiev, Copehnhagen, London, Madrid, Minsk, Moscow, Paris, Beijing, Tokyo and Warsaw) created each individual square of this puzzle, both symbolically in the form of a textile mosaic spelliing out the I, CULTURE logo, where each city involved in the project constituted part of the logo, and practically, through the involvement of different cities in creative workshops.


Last weekend saw I, CULTURE visit Copenhagen for the grand finale of the project, held at Den Frie udstillingsbygning by Østerport station.

Click here to visit I, CULTURE'S official webpage


Promo video from I, CULTURE Warsaw

Rock on Raveonettes !

Many thanks to the endearing shoegazing duo from Sønderborg, the Raveonettes for an enigamtic, charming show at Vega last Saturday. Here's a copy of my article for The Copenhagen Post about the show. 

(The original article can be sourced here (Click) ) 

Indie darlings the Raveonettes gave an unstoppable, unforgettable show at Store Vega on Saturday in a performance that saw the enigmatic Danish shoegazing duo cement their well-established reputation as one of the best local acts on the current scene.  With the memories of a decent Roskilde Festival performance still lingering in the minds of many present at Saturday’s show, and the rising success of their latest album Raven In The Grave, the New York City based Raveonettes had plenty to live up to on the night.  

Sharin Foo and Sune Wagner straddled the fine line between the more sentimental sound of their Everly-brothers inspired lyricism and the wittier, more-upbeat dimension of their music with a sophisticated sense of perfection that was as spellbinding as it was entertaining. The show was anything but a bombastic, stadium-filing affair, but rather a more intimate, well-woven two hours of dreamy adventures into the surreal and spacey sounds of alternative rock, delicately capped with a personal touch from the group’s distinguishable sound.  

The switch between the captivating, nomadic sounds of the band – epitomised by the likes of ‘War in Heaven’ and more abstracted numbers such as ‘Apparitions’ – was typical of the duo’s eloquent juxtaposition of contrasting influences and styles and gave a refreshing sense of variation to a concert that compelled and mystified all at once. This creative exchange left one feeling lost and evanesced at times and at others compelled to sway from side to side in collective appreciation with an almost-sold out audience.

And whilst the Raveonettes were on top of their game almost throughout, one may arguably have been left thirsting for a bit more engagement on their part, if for nothing else to break the monotony of the introspective, non-confrontational shoegazing style that dominated the better part of the concert. This didn’t stop the audience calling them back not once but twice, for a grand finale that ebbed off elegantly with the appropriately placed, well-delivered ‘The Christmas Song’, a tune that summarised all that was good about the night. Ultimately, Saturday’s show will be remembered most for the unique chemistry between Foo and Wagner, stark and palpable at times, and at others consigned to the background by the overpowering drone of upbeat guitar arrangements and colourful cacophonies

I don't know you

Even though I have never met you, I Love you, every last inch of you. I love all 7 billion parts of you.

Visceral life, comme il faut. Stuck in the flicker of a moment in the colour of sound

Love, your rippled reflection

By Scarlet Ricochet

The Collapse of Capitalism. Fiction, Fable or Reality ?

I'm increasingly convinced that politicans, left, right, centre or everywhere are completely and totally incapable of changing the world for the better good. Art on the other hand is a dimension that one can afford to have some faith in, as the short film below shows, most poetically.

Quite frankly, the complete and total collapse of Capitalism, Communism and other doctrines of governance is something that should have happened a long time ago, and no, i'm not advocating anarchy. Idealism leads me to believe that the better nature of man is one that is inherenty apt at sharing, that is before social constructivism storms into the picture and rips the canvas to shreds. Peer to peer governance and Resource-Based Economics that allow for a free, fair and transparent bill of rights for every individual in society, not just those that are born in the bastions and castles of the elite provide provide potentially sustainable solutions to the ills and predicaments of life on earth as we know it today. It all sounds so lofty and it's easy to write about, but will it ever happen ? Well, with Canada pulling out of The Kyoto protocol, in itself a flop, and yet another failed climate conference, the road to the seabed seems to have been shortened somewhat for our dear mother earth, the Titanic ship in which we sail. The real question is, will the band keep on playing until the end, that is will the party go on as the elite jump into lifeboats and flee the scene as the proletariat remain onboard, doomed to drown or will a new world doctrine based on equality and fairness emerge ?

Chariots of Fire

Few forces are capable of denting the seemingly impenetrable shade of darkness and the bitter winter cold that December brings with her than the light and warmth of a candle flame. Add heartwarming music and the mis en scene of a church with age-old whitewashed walls that tower up towards the sky and you've got a combination that is sure to shatter the intensity of the cold surroundings around you.  Trinitatis Church, by Rundetårn (The round tower) plays host to singer / songwriter evenings every Tuesday as part of its weekly yuletide service.  The acoustics of the church and the very fact that independent, free-thinking artists can get the chance to perform in a surrounding that in many countries is all too often associated with heightened and often exaggerated notions of what religion should be about make for a wonderful atmosphere, unlike any other in the world. The fact that the priest who conducts the ceremony is a lesbian also adds a level of religious freedom to Trinitatis church that is unlikely in many other nations who are still caught up in impertinent battles against social taboos that have no moral founding and serve only to sever the bonds of social unity. Here are some pictures from this week's service featuring Kira Martini and her jazz band, who are on the brink of releasing an album that is sure to set a few hearts alight. 

You can listen to Kira's music by clicking here   

The two other bands on the evening were Just Me Maya, whose soulful, impassioned music can be listened to here.  and the endearing Maja Hartnack and her band Det Glemte Kvarter. Grab a listen of her music here.