IM // UR | Ellie Under The Sheets

BEFORE TODAY by Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti

It doesn’t take much to make me feel stupid. Trying to find the words to describe the debut album of Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti at 4AD is just one of many examples I could give you. To me, ‘Before Today’ sounds like an album that Kevin Barnes could be recording if he loved goth bands more than funk ones. Or like the cold wave genre entering a multicoloured psychedelic stage instead of glazing at it's own depression. Don’t mind my threadbare examples; this is the album that will make it onto every interesting top 10 of the year and you don’t wanna miss it.

WE // R \\ WEARING

I can't resist (probably overpriced) basics-with-a-twist. My wardrobe, full of T by Wang, Oak, Bassike and yes, American Apparel is proof of this; and since in Australia, a new favourite has emerged in the form of Nathan Smith. His selection of supersoft tees, tanks and dresses have sucked me into buying multiples of a number of styles in different colourways. You just can't go wrong with these though! Addictively and endlessly wearable - and not in actual fact, overpriced in the slightlest - Nathan Smith is the way forward for your wardrobe.

WE // R \\ WATCHING

I don’t think any series will treat teenagers the same way that Freaks and Geeks did almost 10 years ago. Although relying on every teen American cliché they could, this series was the closest thing to reality you could get whilst still being something fun and interesting to watch – cause, you know, life is boring. With bands like The Who, The Clash and XTC being either part of episodes or the soundtrack, this 80’s based cult show was short-lived (only 18 episodes), but long enough to enrich the careers of some young actors (i.e. James Franco, Seth Rogen, Jason Segel, Busy Philipps and, erm, Linda Cardellini) and is greatly missed. Can we have a movie about them meeting again in the 00’s?

WE // R \\ GOING

Once, a friend of mine wanted to take me to this 'cheap Chinese restaurant', situated in the heart of Liberdade, a Japanese neighborhood in São Paulo. When we got there the place was packed, but because it looked cheesy and kinda poor, I didn't want to wait it out. It took another friend for me to go back there and fall in love with it. Now, every time the mood for some freshly made noodles (you can watch the chief making the noodle dough through a window) framed in some horribly painted pink walls takes me, I go for Rong He. Did I mention the food is also incredibly generous and cheap?

WE // R \\ READING

The ultimate in peeping tom into other, cooler, more fashionable, richer, quirkier and more-hipster-than-thou lives is Todd Selby's The Selby. Having previously been an internet only voyeur's dream, Todd has just last month released The Selby Is In Your Place, a book the coffee table tome full of twee drawings, colourful interiors and people showering. Half of the images in the books are favourites from the website and the other is stuff he hasn't published online yet. So go check it out, maybe buy it if you can to make your crappy coffee table in your crappy apartment that little bit cooler with pictures of someone else's cool stuff.

Ellie Under The Sheets

Friday // October 16, 2009 at 15:18 // filed under Music

Ellie

Somehow, Ellie Goulding has her timing right. I feel like she's doing things at exactly the right pace with the right people. And that's aside from her own awesome-ness. She's releasing her first proper single, entitled 'Under the Sheets' on November 9th via Neon Gold Records. We've gushed about her before, as we found her to be a shining oasis in the sandy monotonous desert that is female pop music.

Accompanied by this uber lush, almost over-laden track, Ellie's voice ricochets in a manner that reminds me Shakira, particularly in that opening sequence. Is that a weird reference? Perhaps it's Shakira's 'Underneath Your Clothes' song title that prompted the link. With all my talk of Shakira lately, you'd think I obsessed or something - I'm really not, promise!

Ellie's vocal is as nimble as a mountain goat, jumping from octave to octave, and just as nimble is Starsmith's production; which makes me feel like I'm in a teen romance film with his tinkling highlights, reminding me of Mr Dan's Magic Wand mix of my favourite Sebastien Tellier track as heard on Gossip Girl, 'La Ritournelle'. Anyhoo, cop the track below and feel the pop power.

Flash Content

Ellie Goulding - Under The Sheets [mp3]

POSTED BY CHRISTEL ESCOSA

TAGS: Ellie Goulding, Starsmith // LINKS: Ellie Goulding