Displaying post 1 to 50 of 459
from
mefi
As God Is My Cleaning Lady: Crypto-Fado For Bohemian Pagan Popsters.
They can't play their classical Fado guitars very well; they have a punky drummer and the Fado singer not only smiles pouts and shakes her hips, but actually seems to
enjoy herself! What's become of this country? Are they mad? Reckless, certainly. They call themselves
A Naifa and what they've done is taken a massive, ice-crunching Waring Pro blender to all the sacred potions, fruits and flavours of Portuguese traditional music and poured out a vulgar, shameless, disrespectful and utterly
delicious shambles of a
Pop cocktail. Heresy in old Lisbon? I nearly choked on my 30-year-old
aguardente velha, but then realized I was dancing merrily and had already spilt most of it anyway. [
Probably not fun for those unfamiliar with the Fado. QuickTime required.]
posted to MetaFilter by MiguelCardoso
at 11:09 PM on September 13, 2004
(10 comments)
The New European Football Champion Will Be Greece Or Portugal:
Sunday's Euro 2004 match is the first final ever between two national teams who've never made a final before, after dispatching the biggest, richest European powers like England, Germany, Spain, Italy and France. Meanwhile,
Maria Sharapova, a 17-year old Russian from Siberia has
won Wimbledon, defeating the mighty Serena Williams. Perhaps size and money, despite the multi-million contracts, still aren't everything in sport. Or does it depend on the sport? [
More inside.]
posted to MetaFilter by MiguelCardoso
at 7:08 PM on July 3, 2004
(53 comments)
I Like To Watch:
A photographic record of cats transfixed; self-referential cats; cat Witnesses of Our Time; cat onlookers; cats gazing stupidly at infinity; lightly hypnotized brainpan-fried cats; feline couch potatoes; cats afflicted by the staring disease; briefly and easily amused cats; UN observer cats; guilty bystander cats. All in all, an extremely important investigation into the perennial question of how to hold a cat's attention. [
Click on "Cats", funnily enough.]
posted to MetaFilter by MiguelCardoso
at 11:43 PM on June 21, 2004
(10 comments)
The Food Of Love:
Oh, forget about music already. What should you
cook if you want to woo a lover? According to Lisa Hilton, it all depends on what nationality (s)he is and what country you're living in...
P.S. Shame on The Observer for choosing the inflammatory but incidental title I've Never Had Good Sex With A Vegetarian!
posted to MetaFilter by MiguelCardoso
at 9:11 PM on May 15, 2004
(23 comments)
The Hirschfeld Follies:
A charming and generous gallery of Al Hirschfeld's portraits from The New York Times, spanning from 1928 to 2002 (
registration required), indexed by
date,
person and
show. Are there any outstanding young contemporary caricaturists out there who are doing good work (not necessarily in the theatre) we old-timers should know about? [
Be sure to accompany with plep's great post on American cartoon and caricature and PeteyStock's January 2004 obituary post. And while you're at it, if you'll excuse the immodesty, my own David Levine post, with a (superb) still-working link.]
posted to MetaFilter by MiguelCardoso
at 5:30 PM on May 5, 2004
(7 comments)
Can Compassionate Fascism Be Far Behind?
It's only a short book review but
Terry Eagleton - who could be defined as a playful and disobedient neo-Marxist literary theorist - manages to give us, propelled by Robert Paxton's universally praised
The Anatomy of Fascism, a pithy and workable definition of fascism and its opposition to conservatism, as well as some depressing, very provocative misgivings about the future of capitalism and the increasing appeal of authoritarianism. Just what is, in the 21st century, the danger and chance of revisionist fascism, in the style of a dubious, unctuous political
I Can't Believe It's Not Democracy margarine? [
Via .]
posted to MetaFilter by MiguelCardoso
at 10:50 PM on May 3, 2004
(17 comments)
Grin And Bear It, Woman! Think Of England!
Caesarean births in the U.K. should be severely curtailed, say the medical mandarins.
Germaine Greer says, in a cracking column, that the
new guidelines are misogyny pure and simple. Is it just my impression (think of
American Pie-type teenage movies; advertising; "guy lit") or are hatred of women and beery, bozo celebrations of indifference to the feminine sex on the up and up?
posted to MetaFilter by MiguelCardoso
at 9:51 PM on April 28, 2004
(64 comments)
Aimez-vous Godard? That Is, If You've Actually Seen One Of His Films.
Gilberto Perez's view of
Godard is strictly personal, as all opinions of his work must be. It does highlight, however, how neglected the restless author's films have lately been. For people of my generation, he was absolutely essential. The supreme cineaste, both with an accent on the "e" (as a film-maker) and without (as a film enthusiast). Whatever became of the
Nouvelle Vague? It seems to me that the contemporary cinema could well do with another blast.
posted to MetaFilter by MiguelCardoso
at 3:16 PM on April 22, 2004
(28 comments)
Forget Fiction And Non-Fiction, Bud: Is The Book Liberal Or Conservative?
The
National Review's bestseller list (
scroll down and click) is starkly divided into "Conservative Bestsellers" and "Liberal Bestsellers". Is this a quirky innovation and deliberate provocation or just plain stupid and sad? Does such a dichotomy in fact exist? How would the literature of the world fit into such a classification? (
This isn't the end of the world as we know it, is it?)
posted to MetaFilter by MiguelCardoso
at 5:22 PM on April 14, 2004
(50 comments)
Eurabia? WTF?
An interesting article by the ultra-prolific Niall Ferguson obliquely raises the question: wouldn't Europe (and the world) be happier if Islam still had a hold on the West? Al-Qaeda's longings for Andalusia and the Algarve apart, the truth is that Southern Spain (until 1498) and Portugal (until 1297) were very happy under Muslim rule. Isn't it sad that the three great monotheistic religions, plus the great atheist belief, can't live together anymore? [
NYT registration required. Via Arts and Letters Daily.]
posted to MetaFilter by MiguelCardoso
at 3:01 AM on April 8, 2004
(25 comments)
The Song Is You:
and, as if that weren't enough, the melody lingers on! The
Songwriters' Hall of Fame is a magnificent resource (
look for the almost-complete song lists) and a reminder of how one single country (The U.S.A.) produced a
hugely disproportionate quantity of the great popular songwriters. It could arguably be said: almost all of them. How many of the "Rock Era" composers, though, have written standards that will still be as widely sung worldwide, in every conceivable dive or circumstance, in 50 years' time as the songs of Arlen, Porter, Gershwin, Berlin, Kern, Rodgers, Carmichael, Youmans, Warren, Ellington, Loesser, Loewe, Coleman and so many others still are today?
posted to MetaFilter by MiguelCardoso
at 5:28 PM on March 28, 2004
(16 comments)
Some Of Our Best Poets Are Fascists:
An interesting article by Guy Davenport. My own theory is that an inordinate percentage of great (and minor) Modernist writers were, politically speaking, bonkers. Ezra Pound, Fernando Pessoa and T.S.Eliot were all distastefully authoritarian, anti-semitic and, in general, rancorous old farts. Why is this, if anyone still cares? [
Via Arts and Letters Daily.]
posted to MetaFilter by MiguelCardoso
at 6:17 AM on March 26, 2004
(22 comments)
Are You Ready To Be Heart-Broken?
Sounding like the sprightly spawn of Radiohead, Coldplay and (yes) Queen, Keane's "Somewhere Only We Know" is, imho, an enchantingly romantic song, lovely and over-ambitious in the tradition of, say, very early Aztec Camera, Ash or Travis. Thing is: their first album, "Fears and Hopes" (
so appropriately named for those inured to pre-first-album-jitters) will be released in May and already I dread the disappointment I just know awaits me. Early promises in Pop music have so often been cruelly broken by follow-ups, "sloppy seconds", maturity, whatever, that I put to you that musical competence, technique and general "production savvy" are inimicable to good, dirty teenage songs such as Keane's. [
Be sure to listen to the other three songs on the web site, although only the gist of the wonderful "Somewhere Only We Know" is offered. They're quite good!]
posted to MetaFilter by MiguelCardoso
at 11:06 PM on March 22, 2004
(31 comments)
Country Life: Wildlife Reports From Around The World.
Here's a generous helping of trip reports from a group of dedicated naturalists who manage to be thorough and entertaining at the same time. It's part of a travel agency's web site, but not so as you'd notice it. Reading through them, one feels quietly (perhaps dangerously?) optimistic at the astonishing variety of all things bright and beautiful in this grossly over-exploited world of ours. (
Well, there may be too many birds in the fauna/flora mix, if you're not a certified ornithologist. Oh - and not enough detail on the local gastronomical delights!)
posted to MetaFilter by MiguelCardoso
at 2:53 PM on March 18, 2004
(5 comments)
The A-Train For Armchair Travellers
The Man in Seat 61, a train-mad Brit called Mark Smith, provides a wonderful guide, with lots of useful information, to train travel in Europe - though obviously catering mostly to British passengers. Choo Choo!
posted to MetaFilter by MiguelCardoso
at 2:49 AM on March 16, 2004
(7 comments)
I Have Seen The Future And It's American Straight Whiskey:
How many things do you know that get not only better but more numerous with every passing year? You could call it
Bourbon, of course, it you wished to exclude the superb Tennessee products of Jack Daniel's and George Dickel (just because they charcoal-filter their otherwise equally impeccable straight whiskey), but you should know that this is only the result of
a strictly commercial rivalry between the two main producers: Brown-Forman (who own Jack Daniel's in Tennessee) and Jim Beam (who make only Kentucky straight whiskies, i.e. Bourbons). Call it
American straight whiskey and be proud! [
More inside.]
posted to MetaFilter by MiguelCardoso
at 9:19 PM on March 13, 2004
(31 comments)
Nice Whisk(e)y: Shame About The Size!
Behold a wonderful, almost infinitely explorable repository of miniature bottles of whisk(e)y; a Japanese one-guy Smithsonian that's quite probably the only resort for those looking for labels of ancient and/or abandoned delights. American straight whiskey fanatics (like me) will be specially surprised. Worth exploring, though exploration isn't easy: it's full of unexpected riches, but never easily had. [
Previously offered in the course of a classic languagehat post.]
posted to MetaFilter by MiguelCardoso
at 9:32 PM on March 10, 2004
(9 comments)
"And The 100 Best Ever Football Players Are..."
The great Pele, himself one of
Time's 100 List, has just presented his very own list, not entirely as diplomatic and Kofi Annan-like as FIFA would perhaps have wished, as it includes, imo, some quirky and interesting choices. It was announced
today, so there's time to bitch about unacceptable omissions and incomprehensible inclusions before the print mob get their dirty little hands on it and tell us all what to think.
posted to MetaFilter by MiguelCardoso
at 10:23 AM on March 4, 2004
(45 comments)
Is Salt The New Olive Oil?
The
New York Times [
registration required] thinks so and
Peter Hertzmann, on his superb
a la carte website, offers an expert analysis of the difficulties of seasoning well. Even the greatest chefs feel insecure with salt, even though most of them would consider it to be, by far, the most important ingredient of all. At least those I've asked. [
I always ask them what 3 ingredients they couldn't do without]. It's cheap; it's essential and there are now so many kinds to choose from. Will this current brouhaha be enough to convince the larger population that
much is lost in using only the industrial, refined stuff? [
Of course, for someone from Southern Europe, olive oil and good sea salt aren't exactly new, so take this with a grain of you know what.]
posted to MetaFilter by MiguelCardoso
at 6:48 PM on February 24, 2004
(28 comments)
Is Alex Ross Trying Too Hard To Be Eclectic?
It's a great article but, imho, a few false notes are struck here and there. Can you love classical and popular music at the same time? Classical types always like the same popular stuff (Dylan and Pink Floyd, of course) and popular types always like the same classical stuff (Wagner, Puccini, Mahler) but somehow the suspicion remains that one's heart can't be in two places at once. There's something ingratiating and icky about attempts to pretend "it's all music". It isn't, is it? Also, God forgive me, 20 is
way too late to start listening to Pop.
posted to MetaFilter by MiguelCardoso
at 2:35 AM on February 20, 2004
(50 comments)
What Are The Odds Against Hamlet?
This wonderful piece, representative of British academia at its best, most tongue-in-cheek, inclusive and playful, still presents a problem which wasn't (probably can't be) solved. What are the odds that it could be taken seriously? Mathematicians and literary theorists enter at their peril. The rest of us can feel free!
posted to MetaFilter by MiguelCardoso
at 6:23 AM on February 10, 2004
(5 comments)
The Occidental Tourist:
The West is the pest, according to a cracking, provocative article from wise old
Ian Buruma, and wily occidentals who gingerly try to sidestep the shit and try to make the U.S. take all the blame may be underestimating their involvement. [
Via Arts & Letters Daily.]
posted to MetaFilter by MiguelCardoso
at 6:18 AM on February 4, 2004
(13 comments)
Sowing One's Wild Oats And Postponing Last Straws:
Some things never change the world over and the gist of this amusing language lesson (
be sure to listen to the sountrack too) seems familiar and even easy to guess. However, different cultures allow for different rates of growing up - and
out of things. Regarding the
sowing of wild oats, is the West really the most lenient and generous, in terms of age-limits? What part does religion play? In other words, what's the maximum you can get away with nowadays?
At a pinch, I'd say Southern European Catholic countries will extend a woman's visa till she's 35 and a man's till he's 40 but certain *cough* other cultures seem to be even more favourable towards eternal adolescence.
posted to MetaFilter by MiguelCardoso
at 5:53 PM on January 31, 2004
(18 comments)
Heinz Meanz Beanz:
Is America ready for a sassy, intelligent, outspoken, wilful, foul-mouthed, irreverent, garrulous, domineering, flamboyant, freethinking and utterly charming First Lady?* Portugal certainly is - as Teresa Heinz Kerry, born Teresa Simoes Ferreira, is Portuguese and it would be nice to have
a secret agent such a close ally in the White House. But there's also
a lot of hate about. Do most American voters really take candidates' wives, husbands or partners into account?
*
Heh. The "utterly charming" was added at the last minute when I realized that all these adjectives could apply to Hilary Clinton.
posted to MetaFilter by MiguelCardoso
at 1:56 PM on January 26, 2004
(57 comments)
Will New Hampshire Be A Gigantic Yawn? Or a YEAAARGH?
Dave Barry is sleeping now.
Mark Steyn, despite his annoying hubris, is clearly worried. They both live in New Hampshire, but... just
how important was Howard Dean's exuberance? (
Fwiw, for a Latin living overseas, it looks like a load of hype. What was so outrageous? Isn't America the home of rah-rah-rah?)
posted to MetaFilter by MiguelCardoso
at 11:07 PM on January 24, 2004
(59 comments)
Do Most People Even Know What They're Eating?
Pork is served as veal; tilapia as red snapper and who knows what goes into sausages and other processed meat and fish products? You don't have to be an observant Jew or Muslim to be worried. How many years have those chicken pieces been frozen? How much
pork and beef have been added to them? As food is increasingly disguised (fish fingers, chicken nuggets, beefburgers) to hide its origins, feeding on hypocritical popular revulsion with animals' existence, death - and carcasses! - aren't consumers setting themselves up for an ever greater measure of food fraud? That is, if they still care. (And no, it's not just an American phenomenon.) [
Via The Daily Gullet. ]
posted to MetaFilter by MiguelCardoso
at 8:04 PM on January 23, 2004
(49 comments)
