Sweden

Phasing out Capitalism and Communism

Anybody with half a mind that hasn't been sleeping under a tree for the last few years will no doubt agree that Communism and Capitalism have failed to address the main issues that hamper global development today.

We live in a world where social inequalities are accepted as being part of life, where the Western world, having farmed the third world through colonialism sits proudly on its laurels today consuming the produce of third world countries having developed and built up and hegemony of unparalleled proportions. The third world on the other hand, dependent on false interpretations of religion, superstition and a spectacular level of short-sightedness as far as individualistic thinking is concerned remains painfully subjugated, unable to influence its own fate.

Resource Based Economics- a tad idealistic, but what would you rather ? A society based on morals and ethics independent of religion, culture and so on or a culture of corruption under the guise of religion and culture (as is the case now with both Communism, Capitalism, Fascism, Monarchism...You name it) We're stuck on repeat, circling a drainpipe. It's spinning anti-clockwise south of the equator and clockwise north of it, faster for some, slower for others but ultimately we're all headed down the sink unless we find a way to stop the flow and replenish the basin. 

Hope

Joyeaux printemps !

Original article at : http://cphpost.dk/inout/concerts/balkan-beat-it-should-be

Or in today's version of the paper. 

Balkan beat as it should be

Allan Mutuku-Kortbæk

May 14, 2012 - 10:02

***** (5 stars out of 6); May 11 at Lille Vega

Tako Lako dug up some good tunes at Friday's show (Photo: Christian Hjort)

Balkan music is often uncouth and rough around the edges, but it’s ultimately a music genre that's licensed to thrill, every time.  The big news in town on Friday evening was that the kings of the Balkan scene, Brooklyn-based group Balkan Beat Box, were performing at Pumpehuset in what must have been an epic show.  Yet Denmark's own Balkan favourites, cult heroes Tako Lako, were also stealing their share of the headlines at the same time, playing to a sold-out Lille Vega in a concert that proved why MTV has declared them as one of Denmark’s potentially biggest stars.

Tako Lako have had the honour of performing at both Glastonbury and Roskilde Festival, and with their debut album, Through The Mud,  set to drop in August, one can only expect bigger and better things from them this year.  Led by charismatic lead vocalist Ognjen Curcic, they took to the stage before a salivating crowd and immediately got into a party mood, primarily playing songs off their 2009 EP,Kickstart.  It's always nice to see a band that enjoy themselves on stage, without really making a concerted effort to do so. This was certainly true of Tako Lako, who were having an absolute ball on Friday night, bursting with energy and enthusiasm that spread rather contagiously to the audience.    

An interesting twist to the concert was the brief appearance of three-time Danish MC fight night master Pede B towards the end. The combination of raw hip-hop and raunchy Balkan, though only for a handful of songs, went down very well with the audience, who were responsive and cheery throughout the show. Turntablist genius DJ Noize, was also on hand to spark things up with his mixing skills, adding yet another dimension to Tako Lako's psychedelic gypsy beats universe.  

Though Tako Lako only played for a brief hour, it is clear that this a band with immense potential and plenty of accessibility. Their Balkan-infused tracks draw from a wide range of underground influences, and their on-stage collaborations with all manner of musicians from other disciplines gives them an edge over many bands at the moment. If Friday's concert is anything to go by, Tako Lako may well and truly be one of the best bands in Denmark at the moment.

The saga of the mist

The saga of the mist

Finds me awake and alert 

A stranger on the shifty seashore 

A flower on the wall of time

Life is visceral for its earnest practitioners 

And here we stand 

Mad to live, mad to lie, mad to die 

Every second ticking away like steps of eternity 

Greenwood has long since been destroyed 

Desolation row revoked and rescinded 

The gates of doom opened for the bridal march 

Materialists, consumers, whirlpool degenerates 

We're a marching band of highland lambs 

Led by innocence, led by the astute

Pray, where does this cookie trail lead 

but to Hansel, Gretel and the saints of old ? 

 

Spring From Chateau Panum: Ciao Sara

Nomads in The Sands Of Time

I haven't written a poem for a while now, having chosen to focus on making music with my existent poetry, a process that is easier said than done. This is my latest poem, inspired by the Beat generation and Jack Kerouac's "On The Road."

I feel marginalised and shelved in this country at the moment, born into a world that negates multiculturalism and that systematically creates a hegemonic system that sorts people according to their social and economic opportunities based on their ethnicities.

Well, even though many minority voices may be tamed and even muted, mine won't. This is my response to Europe's far-right ethnic assassination attempt on me.

I shall run again one day I am sure

When, I do not know

How, I cannot tell

Why, Is not for me to judge

I shall fly again one day I am sure

Into the wispy winds of time

Towards eternity and the savannah sun

Towards a smile, a laugh, an embrace

I shall dream again another day

And carve you a sunset that will make you smile

A golden dawn that will kiss you from your sleep

An evening wind that will cool your eyes

I shall live again another day

Along the open road ever ahead of me

Vast, vague but always ahead

Your hand in mine, nomads in the sands of time  

The Screaming Eagle of Soul rocks Vega to its core

Original article at: http://cphpost.dk/inout/concerts/screaming-eagle-soul-rocks-vega-its-core

Or in this weeks physical copy of The Copenhagen Post 

The Screaming Eagle of Soul rocks Vega to its core

Allan Mutuku-Kortbæk

May 2, 2012 - 09:33

***** (5 stars out of 6); April 29 at Lille Vega

No tears this time, but plenty of soul (Photo: Jonas Bang / bangphotos.dk)

When Charles Bradley stepped off the scene at last year's Roskilde Festival, those present knew they'd just borne witness to something legendary. 'The Screaming Eagle of Soul', as he is commonly referred to, had put on a smashing show that featured him breaking down in tears, as he has been known to do every now and again at his shows. The concert went on to be declared one of the best of the festival by much of the national press.

While Bradley didn't burst into tears on his return to Denmark at Lille Vega on Sunday, he did, however, give the audience a memorable experience that explains why so many herald him as the James Brown of our time.

Bradley's backing band, The Extraordinaires, got things going with a trio of feisty, anthemic non-vocal tunes that sounded like they'd been ripped straight out of Gordon Park's epic 1971 film, Shaft. Bradley stepped onto the stage amidst a rapturous applause and already two songs into the proceedings was sending ripples down the audience's spines as songs off his only album No Time For Dreaming created something of a frenzy. The first part of the show featured more sentimental tunes such as the powerful 'The World (Is Going Up in Flames)' before a short instrumental interlude allowed Bradley to drift off stage to catch his breath.  He came back guns a-blazing with a cover of Neil Young's 'Heart of Gold', followed by a series of songs that allowed him to showcase his arsenal of dance moves and rant about the state of modern-day America.

It's not every day that one sees someone in their 60s do splits on stage, let alone sing with the power, prowess and sheer emotion that Bradley manages at his shows.  The man is a living marvel and an inspiration to anyone out there who thinks it's too late to do anything, having released his only studio album last year at the age of 62.

Bradley gave the audience at Vega on Sunday a show that they' will be thinking about for a while and one can only expect even greater things from the Florida-born Screaming Eagle of Soul, a man who sings with the evo