Howdy. I have come back from almost a half year of no new posts. ..Yeah, I suck.

Anyway, what I wish to talk about is a wonderful new band called Wild Belle. The vocals are hauntingly beautiful and the music is entrancing. I can't wait to hear more from them and see them shoot to the music scene like a comet! They will ;)

Photo taken from Wild Belle's tumbr page, posted 15.02.2012. Photo by Alexander Wagner

Members: Natalie Bergman (vocals) and Elliot Bergman (saxophone, keyboards)
From: Chicago, US
The buzz/reviews: "It's tantalisingly good and it leaves us begging for more" – ThisisfakeDIY
"Looking for the new Lana Del Rey? Look no further, for here is a band that bloggers from Brighton to Brooklyn will drool over" The Guardian

Wild Belle online:
Facebook
Tumblr
Twitter

Listen to their song "Keep You" here or go to their page: http://wildbelle.bandcamp.com/

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I love languages and learning about their history. Languages are complex, varied and they have always greatly interested me. In many ways our language defines who we are, shows where we come from and enriches us with a culture that is unique. As I said, I love languages - they are utterly fascinating.

So I don't need to explain any further why I'm so excited about this new TV-show!

Yesterday aired the first episode (called Babel) of the series Fry's Planet Word on BBC2. In this series Stephen Fry explores language in all its amazing glory and in his own distinctive way. How we learn it, write it, sometimes lose it, why it defines us to the very core of our being and can make us laugh, cry, tear our hair out and simply inspire us. The series will consist of hour-long episodes, 5 in total.

I have a feeling I will adore this series based on the first episode. From the Turkana tribe in Africa to the use of sign language to the scanning of mr. Fry's brain with MRI - Babel was captivating and intelligent with just the right amount of humor sprinkled on top. And Stephen Fry was right in his own element, of course, as it is widely known that linguistics is a great passion of his. All in all - brilliant!

I highly recommend to check it out - you will not regret the time spent on it! And you might even get a tad smarter ;)

On the photo: Stephen Fry sitting with the Turkana tribe (photo taken from BBC homepage, all rights belong to them)

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As everyone who knows me is aware, I live off of caffeine sometimes. I have cut back on the consumption of it pretty drastically, but I still really enjoy a good cup of coffee or cappuccino. There's just something about the aroma and the whole process of making/drinking coffee that I really like. It's my every morning ritual and I seriously do not know how I would start my day without it!

Another thing I love is finding art and beauty in the simplest things in life and in small, everyday situations. May it be a beautiful button on a ratty old blouse or an interesting splash of color on a sidestreet wall. Finding and noticing those small instances of beauty is what makes one smile and marvel at the world and what can bring joy to our otherwise mediocre days.

Now combine those things together and voila - you get coffee art! Something small to brighten up your day with and put a smile on your sleep-deprived face when you finally drag yourself out of bed and to the nearest café to grab that necessary dose of caffeine.

Check out this video of the possibilities that one small coffee cup holds for artistic expression!

I hope all of you can find a barista who will make you smile despite the early hours with little hearts in your morning coffee! :)

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Tally Hall and their famous colorful ties:
Green-Andrew Horowitz/Gray-Ross Federman/Yellow-Rob Cantor/Red-Joe Hawley/Blue-Zubin Sedghi

: welcome to Tally Hall!

: album GOOD & EVIL

The long-awaited second studio album of Tally Hall finally got released in June this summer and I just wanted to take this chance to make a post about this magnifiscent group and their totally awsome music to share their whacky talent with all of you! :)

The first single off the new album called You & Me was released on 2nd of May on a music site CoS and on iTunes the next day. Plus, the track "&" was released on the 20th of June on the bands YouTube account.

So here are both of the songs so you can check them out yourself!

So, in conclusion - check them out @ their official page> www.tallyhall.com !
And welcome to awesome!


: short background about Tally Hall
Tally Hall is an awesome indie rock band, or "wonky rock" as they have themselves dubbed it, from Ann Arbor, Michigan who garnered a lot of attention way back when their first album came out in 2005. Marvin's Marvelous Mechanical Musem it was called and it had an amazingly fun sound to it. Just listening to it you could hear how much fun these guys had while writing it. They played around with lyrics, voices and beats in a very skillful way that just made you want to ride on the awesome wave with them! And many were hooked ;)
The album was first released by Quack!Media and later in 2008 re-released by Atlantic Records.
Between the 2008 re-release of their debut album and the new in June released album Good & Evil, there seems to have been a lot of turbulence for the band. And most of what went down is still unknown to the public. It IS known that they started writing the new album in 2009 and it was supposed to be released by Atlantic Records but for reasons NOT known the band returned to their original label Quack!Media and the album was released by them on June 21, 2011.

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This post is about a soon to be released British film called Albatross.

The world exclusive trailer for the movie Albatross was posted on Guardian today and it caught my attention immediately!
Directed by BAFTA-nominated Niall MacCormick (known for 'Margaret Thatcher: The Long Road to Finchley'), Albatross is pitched as a funny and moving coming-of-age story in which a girl named Emilia, full of wit and sarcasm, turns the lives of one particular family completely on its head. Emilia (played by Jessica Brown-Findlay) becomes friends with a bookish girl Beth (Felicity Jones) and she is the one whose family will go into a complete turmoil. Sebastian Koch plays the father/novelist who takes an interest in Emilia's wish to write and Julia Ormong gives life to the role of a snobbbish houswife.
The movie will be first shown at the Edinburgh Film Festival on the 19th of July.

Official site: www.albatrossmovie.com
Review by Adele Brunnhofer on Celluloid Heroes Radio.

This is a movie that I think is well worth looking out for.
Can't wait for it to be in the cinemas already!

And here it is - the trailer!

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Today I stumbled on some pretty fun and awesome cartoons while browsing the Smashing Magazine. Every Friday they publish a new cartoon under the Smashing Cartoons, created by Ricardo Gimenes. The cartoons are dedicated to design and Web development, but also have a comic twist in them.

So, without further ado, here is one of their smashing cartoons called "They Just Don't Care". Enjoy! :)

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Hi! I'm Karen.
It's nice to meet you!

And, to add a face to the text, this is what I looked like at one moment in time>

I love different things. Some of them include reading, the smell of freshly mown grass, rain, notebooks and pencils, making lists, cleaning, water, animals, equality, open-minded people, listening to/ playing/ singing music... Im sure in the course of writing this blog we will all get to know more of my likes, as well as perhaps some dislikes ;)

Regarding art: I love it! I love all kinds of art, but at the moment I mostly engage in writing, photography and some elementary-level sketching. My photographs, sketches and writings can be found on RedBubble, Society6 and DeviantArt.
I plan to write about all possible sides of art, though. Not only the ones I myself dabble in. And I think that throughout the course of mapping down the different expressions of art on this page I will reveal more about what I like than a hundred words could describe.

Now, a RedBubble widget with my artsy stuff!

And just a few photos as well! :)

 
Without any further fuss, I am now underway with my own little art corner. I welcome you wholeheartedly to become a regular guest here - I have comfy couches, hot chocolate and waffles to make you feel completely at home! :)

So, take a glance around and visit me again sometime - my door is always open!

Much love,
~nells

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