Bye Bye Beautiful
I got into Nightwish not very long before the End of an Era firing of vocalist Tarja Turunen. I had not really been following the band all that much, and beyond the actual songs I knew very little about it. I associated Nightwish with the vocalist, and not with music being written by Tuomas Holopainen. So I was shocked that they were going to replace what I thought was the defining aspect of the band.
And so I was eager and excited to hear that Turunen was going to be releasing a solo album. By this time I had begun to appreciate the actual music beyond the voice, and was excited to be having a new Nightwish album and a new Tarja album in the same year.
Dark Passion Play, with its new singer Anette Olzon quickly became my most-played album ever; it started off slow and finally built up to me absolutely adoring it. Even the song Master Passion Greed, sung solely by bass player Marco Hietala became a favourite (along with his song The Islander) helping me move beyond my refusal to listen to anything other than female-fronted metal.
All was good, and My Winter Storm was on its way. I Walk Alone was already receiving playtime on my iTunes. I just couldn’t wait for My Winter Storm.
But when it finally came out, and I heard it for the first time, all I could think was Bye Bye Beautiful.
It’s bland. It’s boring. The lyrics are cheesy. And I have to force myself to listen to it. I tried to listen to it while writing this entry and only managed to get to the tenth track before switching over to Dark Passion Play. After talking to a friend about MWS, I’m now listening to Epica and am refusing to go back to MWS.
The album has its moments, but they are few and far between. Without the vocals several would make for excellent background music, but that’s not what you want to say about a person “renowned” for their vocals and their debut album. My Winter Storm lacks spark and personality, and offers nothing for someone like me - someone who is not a Tarja-devotee. Unless Tarja really steps up with her next offering, I will just have to say this:
Bye bye beautiful.
Respect the Elderly! Or At Least Don’t Laugh And Point
Even though this happened nearly 24 hours ago, I am still so pissed off I am shaking.
My grandfather is a very sweet old man. He’s at the point in his life where he is very childlike in some ways (like zooming away with the shopping trolley, pretending to hit cars), and he doesn’t get to go out very often. His days are spent taking care of my grandmother, and filling in the time until my grandmother needs help. His world revolves around her, and it’s not a new thing - when he was much younger, he called my grandmother back from her holiday because he couldn’t bear to be apart from her.
He only goes out twice a week, both times to go to the supermarket and get what he and Nana needs. On Tuesdays he goes by himself; on Fridays my mother comes along. Whenever I don’t have classes, I come along and help the two of them. Grandad enjoys going out to the shops because it’s a chance to interact with other people. The people at the supermarket all know him well now, and always stop to talk to him and such. Occassionally other shoppers talk to him as well, and I’ve received a lot of kind words from people, saying how nice it is that I am taking care of my grandfather so well and spending time with him.
It is not these people I am angry with.
Yesterday, on one of my rare Fridays off, I went with Mum and Grandad to the supermarket, happy to see my Nana and Grandad. However, because of my Grandad being like a child and getting into everything/wandering off, I have to keep watch on him. When he wandered off at one point I called after him: “Grandad”.
And that’s when I heard it. Snickers and someone mimicking my call to my Grandad. I looked back to see two workers (both male, and in their late teens, early twenties) peering around corners and snickering to each other about my Grandad and me. When I spoke to Grandad again, I heard more mimicking and laughing. They watched us for a while, and snickered when I glared at them.
What the hell makes it okay to laugh at customers like that? Heck, what makes it okay to laugh at anyone like that? Would they like it if they were in my place and I laughed at them? Of course not. My Grandad is a sweet old man, and it would really hurt him to know that people were laughing at him like that (thankfully he was out of range and is losing his hearing - I never thought I would be grateful for the latter).
I hate people sometimes. I hope life comes back and bites them in the ass.
