Why not...

Hello.

So, I've decided to post a few entries in English just because I want to, really. This is my space and I'm probably writing into the vacuum, that space where the random blogs gets lost in the track of time and space. I don't really mind. I get to write what I want, when I want and cover the topics I want to cover. I am in a moment in my life I like to discuss things related to music, but I enjoy movies and books as well. I believe there is space for everything in one's life, right? 

If anyone cared to read what I've been posting the past few months you might have noticed I talk about James Blunt a lot. Let's be honest, the man is not really popular. I don't care. I like his music. I am entitled to do so. Why do I like it? I have no idea, but it moves me. Now, why people tend to judge you or a musician through what they write or listen to? I'll give a shocking example: what does it change in the world if I listen to James Blunt or not? What does it change in the world if James Blunt releases an album or single or not? Live your life, people. You have the option of listening to it or not. The same goes to anything else, be it book, movie, series or other musicians/composers.

I confess I've given strong opinions in the past about people who listened to Justin Bieber, for example. I offer Bieber as an example because he is a world known singer, but I've made hard comments about Brazilian musicians merely because I disliked their music. My feelings are unchanged about Justin Bieber. The same goes for the other musicians I've written negatively about. But... My life isn't over because they exist. If people like it, good for them. People are entitled to enjoy anything they want. I will never criticize anyone for their awful taste in music, the same way I can like James Blunt and collect his albums if I so wish for, but in the same way people might feel strongly for Bieber and other musicians I'm not keen on.

There is a thing about me that I've noticed. It takes a while for me to enjoy a new thing. When Blunt released his first single from The Afterlove which happened to be Love me Better I wasn't sure if I had liked it. Then I tried it again. And again. Now it is not my favorite song out of that album, but I can listen to it. My favorite songs out of his latest album has been Heartbeat, Bartender, Over, Courtney's Song and, of course, the emotionally painful Don't Give me Those Eyes. Oh my God, that song blew me away. I could listen to it all day. It is catchy and it really stays with me every time that I listen to it. Well done, James Blunt. Well done.

The clip for BARTENDER:

A friend of mine last year asked me where the Hell was James Blunt, he had disappeared. She says she likes his music and all, she was the one who first showed me Blunt's iconic song You're Beautiful, but like most people in Brazil doesn't follow him on Twitter nor any other means. She is dependent on the radio to know new songs. Not me. After I surrender and admit to like a certain singer/ songwriter I give all of me to this. I try to know more, I watch interviews, I search for their new work, I go after it. But I suppose many people don't do that. I've got to be honest, I don't listen to the radio. That is not how I get to know new artists. That means it is a little harder for me to know what is fashionable right now. If James Blunt didn't associate with Ed Sheeran, for example, I'm not sure I'd know who Ed is. Sorry, Ed. You seem to be a nice guy, likable musician, but I don't quite get taken by your music. Now it brings me to the topic I was covering before: so what I don't quite enjoy his music, it doesn't rock my world, let him compose his things and earn his living from his work! Why people keep making small things turn into big things, like comparing James Blunt to Hitler, for one. There was a tweet in Spanish that James replied to in his Twitter account that said something like, in a direct translation, James Blunt is the worst thing that happened to humankind since Hitler. Nice sense of perspective there, my friend. Well done. But I digress...

James Blunt released two clips for the same song, Don't Give me Those Eyes. I loved both videos, but one is more tame and easier to follow, while the other is darker and more dramatic (I'll put the videos somewhere in this post!) and I like both of them, but the latest video, which is the darker one, is so... Shocking. It completely distressed me and it leads me to my question:

Why does James Blunt like to die so many times in his clips? Someone should get him treated! But I'm of course joking. James has certainly dealt with death in a level many people will never understand, having been a soldier and been to a war zone. That is something that marks someone and you can see it throughout all of his work, which makes sense. He writes about some pretty personal stuff. He has songs that state things like: "I've killed a man in a distant land", "So I set out to cut myself" and "if she had wings she would fly away and another day God will give her some" and it all shows the man behind those lyrics and it is all right. Maybe that is exactly what gives him loyal fans. I might start something here where I dissect the lyrics to my favorite songs, be it James Blunt or Paul McCartney. Yes, I like this idea.

Below you can see the first version of Don't Give me Those Eyes:

And the one he released this week - and that he says will be his last video for The Afterlove (sad over this):