Year: 2016

  • Delerium – Blue Fires

    Delerium – Blue Fires

    Welcome to the dream. The dream takes place inside her mind while she floats inside ours, carried by blue fires and ephemeral sounds. Take her hand, dance, that’s why the rhythm is there. Fly, sway, let the music take you away.

    Harmonies and echoes ease the melody’s flow into our imagination, where it shines and soothes. If there would be such a thing as a contemporary musical definition of dreamy, then I think this song should be among the prime examples. There’s nothing that screams “fantastic production values” louder than a solid Delerium song. Love at first listen.

    “Blue fires burning again
    In my head
    All the things we left unsaid
    In my head”

    You can listen to the song for free, in good quality, on BandCamp, which is one of the best websites when it comes to supporting artists. You can also purchase the song (or album) from this same location. And in case you’re wondering, yes, I did purchase Delerium’s album :). After all, it’s my favorite band at the moment and I was waiting for this album for years. There, I’ve said it!

    https://metropolisrecords.bandcamp.com/track/blue-fires^

    YouTube (decent quality):

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w0WxwKr1490

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w0WxwKr1490^

    For Spotify Users (high quality):

    https://open.spotify.com/track/2gnoiPvft3gs1EunOIWcY5^

    For Deezer Users (high quality):

    http://www.deezer.com/track/129781400^

    [ax_meta lnimgurl=’http://mentatul.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/01259-DeleriumMythologie-Thumb.jpg’ lnimgw=’250′ lnimgh=’250′ title=’Delerium – Blue Fires’ desc=’Take her hand, dance, that’s why the rhythm is there. Fly, sway, let the music take you away.’]

  • Season’s Greetings

    Season’s Greetings

    A lot of people are celebrating Christmas these days. Even more are just enjoying an extended weekend. And even more people are happy to be alive. Even more are… simply alive.

    I wish you beautiful days, regardless of what you’re celebrating or doing :). Have lovely times with the family, friends, have fun, play games, do nothing, sleep, take a walk on the wild side :D. I think the only thing that really matters is that you love. Love what you do, love what you have around you, love who you are. And if things are difficult (as sometimes they can be) and the feeling of love isn’t easy to come by, well then I have some for you, in the form of thankfulness:

    Thank you for being here! Thank you for shining the light of your consciousness upon these words. Every single person shines a different light, but all these different, unique colors are still part of the rainbow of love :).

    Here’s a little Christmas carol in my style:

    http://mentatul.com/2016/02/24/infected-mushroom-pink-froid/^

    [ax_meta lnimgurl=’http://mentatul.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/01594-SeasonsGreetings-Thumb.jpg’ lnimgw=’250′ lnimgh=’250′ title=’Season’s Greetings’ desc=’Thank you for being here! Thank you for shining the light of your consciousness upon these words. Every single person shines a different light, but all these different, unique colors are still part of the rainbow of love :)’]

  • Christmas as Avatar of Consumerism

    Christmas as Avatar of Consumerism

    Cultural war is tricky business. As a living entity, culture needs mechanisms of protection from external threats. But intellectual defensive systems can become an obstacle for evolution especially when a culture has fallen in love with itself to the point where criticism is no longer seen as a mechanism for progress. For all its merits, Western culture is affected by a plague of intellectual rigidity.

    There is no need to generalize. There are many Westerners who are quite open to change and new ideas, perhaps more-so than any other major culture on Earth. This is only sufficient if these people can trigger an evolutionary step forwards by reaching a critical mass enough to spread a wave of change throughout society.

    Why Christmas?

    What does all this have to do with Christmas? It’s quite simple really. Changing the way we interpret Christmas is probably a litmus test for cultural evolution. Why do we need to reinterpret this cultural event? Because it is the avatar of a way of doing business that may have made sense in the 20th century, but will only lead to worsening the quality of life on this planet for future generations of human beings.

    Welcome to one of the many "Christmas factories" in China
    Welcome to one of the many “Christmas factories” in China

    Christmas and the surrounding period has become a sad proof of how masses can be manipulated into doing whatever the manufacturers of fake value desire. Peer pressure drives people into shops, irrespective if their friends or family require the presents they are (socially) forced into buying.

    Healthy products, made by happy workers (Santa's elves) in excellent working conditions
    Healthy products, made by happy workers (Santa’s elves) in excellent working conditions

    Adding insult to injury is a plethora of consumerist traditions such as Black Friday. All in all, Western culture is chiefly responsible for the environmental destruction of dozens of countries that occurs while shopping malls have transformed Christmas carols into soundtracks for consumption. Perhaps organized religion deserves its fate of being defiled by capitalism.

    Our environment, our heritage, our children however, do not deserve this fate. Perhaps we should do something to stop this rampant consumerism from wrecking our future. This is not to say that we should stop purchasing gifts or merchandise. It simply means that perhaps we should think twice about the value we will extract from a purchase. It also means that we should avoid buying wares from manufacturers that are clearly designing their products in such a way that forces us into a lifetime commitment of perpetual upgrades and spiraling costs.

    "But thanks to us, they have a job" is the worst excuse for manufacturing fake value
    “But thanks to us, they have a job” is the worst excuse for manufacturing fake value

    The trick

    Does upgrading a phone every two years even make sense? I’ve used my Galaxy Note 3 for almost 3 years now and, thanks to the replaceable battery, will probably use it for more time to come. Even though Samsung’s software is very bad (fixed via installing custom, de-bloated firmware), they used to produce quality hardware some years ago (no longer the case, new Samsung phones are built to be fully replaced). Actually, most phone manufacturers now-a-days build these devices in such a way that replacing the battery is difficult and costly.

    It’s the same racket that the printer industry has been engaged in for decades, but with a more devious implementation – observe how corporations have become masters of milking the population. Almost all industries have various ways of coaxing consumers into purchasing pieces of our planet’s minerals, usually taken from countries that are exploited by developed nations.

    Take a deep breath, close your eyes and repeat after me: "This isn't the job a human being in the 21st century should wake up to"
    Take a deep breath, close your eyes and repeat after me: “This isn’t the job a human being in the 21st century should wake up to”

    Even though the Earth will probably survive us, we should not be so sure that we can survive what a broken ecosystem can do to us. And don’t think that those that are chiefly responsible for the destruction of our ecosystem will suffer alongside us. With their money and power, using today’s technology, it’s quite easy to build paradises for the rich & privileged. In the meantime, the rest of the planet will suffer the consequences of having been fooled into turning the Earth in a factory of products built for becoming obsolete, engineered to break as soon as the warranty expires.

    In our family, we design our own Christmas decorations. Because maybe he should not breathe toxic fumes.
    In our family, we design our own Christmas decorations. Because maybe he should not breathe toxic fumes.

    Solutions

    As usual, the solution is spreading knowledge. It’s very easy and everybody can take part in this. Encourage people to think about their purchases. Investigate mercilessly and purchase only those products that are known to deliver quality and can be easily repaired. This will encourage the companies of tomorrow. Such companies do exist.

    There are clothing companies that strive to recycle and reward customers for bringing in old clothes, giving them discounts. There are phone manufacturers that design their devices so that the batteries can be replaced. There are software companies that are not obsessed with finding ways to trick users into new purchases with fake features, but instead are happy to remain as small, driven teams, focusing on quality and enjoying the loyalty of satisfied customers.

    Ready to bring the joy of Christmas into every home. Would Christ approve of the way Christians celebrate his birthday?
    Ready to bring the joy of Christmas into every home. Would Christ approve of the way Christians celebrate His birthday?

    Many times, people end up buying useless gifts due to social pressure. Material gifts are not the only way to reward a relationship. I have purchased no presents this year, even though I love a lot of people in my life. Instead, I have gifted experiences to those that are close to me. I have gifted words, time, love and care. What I received in return was more love, sometimes even tears of joy.

    To know exactly what to tell somebody in order to cause a positive emotional response takes knowing that person, or at least knowing how to appeal to something that is a common denominator for us all – love. The effort invested in reaching another’s heart, and the reward thereafter is more worth it than anything any shop will ever offer for sale.

    In a certain Nordic country, Westerner consumers are enjoying the "Santa run", a sort of convenient pilgrimage for the religion of capitalism. They will then proceed to throw away these garnments, with little regard to those who made them or the wasted material. So much for Western "civilization".
    In a certain Nordic country, Western consumers are enjoying the “Santa run”, a sort of convenient pilgrimage for the religion of capitalism. They will then proceed to throw away these garnments, with little regard to those who made them or the wasted material. So much for Western “civilization”.

    Except the last one, the picture for this article have been taken from this beautiful and enlightening photographic essay over at Lens Culture:

    https://www.lensculture.com/articles/ronghui-chen-christmas-factory^

    [ax_meta fbimgurl=’http://mentatul.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/01356-ChristmasAvatarConsumerism-Share.jpg’ lnimgurl=’http://mentatul.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/01356-ChristmasAvatarConsumerism-Thumb.jpg’ fbimgw=’1170′ fbimgh=’350′ lnimgw=’250′ lnimgh=’250′ title=’Christmas as Avatar of Consumerism’ desc=’Changing the way we interpret Christmas is probably a litmus test for cultural evolution.’]

  • Subheim – Foray

    Subheim – Foray

    Upon hitting “play”, a haunting depth opens. Despite its understated rhythm, the melody is, somehow, incredibly convincing. An almost ritualistic chant in the first half of the song acts as both compositional boundary and atmospheric enhancer. Are the choirs gloomy or ecstatic? This one is indeed a foray, a foray into an abyss where the imagination can wander and find wonders, or terrors. It’s all a matter of free will.

    German producer Subheim is one of my recent finds when it comes to dark ambient electronica. Judging by what I’ve heard so far from him, it sure looks like I’ll feature his music again.

    YouTube (decent quality):

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LlMfzGzKaQc

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LlMfzGzKaQc^

    For Spotify Users (high quality):

    https://open.spotify.com/track/13S4BWfxhcV1alNWyjKUrl^

    For Deezer Users (high quality):

    http://www.deezer.com/track/115243918^

    [ax_meta lnimgurl=’http://mentatul.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/01254-SubheimForay-Thumb.jpg’ lnimgw=’250′ lnimgh=’250′ title=’Subheim – Foray’ desc=’Despite its understated rhythm, the melody is, somehow, incredibly convincing. An almost ritualistic chant in the first half of the song acts as both compositional boundary and atmospheric enhancer.’]

  • Big Data Is People!

    Big Data Is People!

    I really liked the way the author of this excellent article about Big Data used the Soylent Green^ reference. Indeed, Big Data is people:

    https://aeon.co/essays/why-big-data-is-actually-small-personal-and-very-human^

    This has been a very good read. The subject of Big Data is treated quite exhaustively. What is currently a popular buzz-word is carefully disassembled and explained in proper-sized bits. There is some historical information about the field of statistics in there too, both interesting and, at times, amusing.

    Big Data is here to stay, that much is certain. But while the rewards this paradigm can offer are great, we should also be aware of the risks to our privacy and the threat it carries regarding how it can and will affect our society.

    [ax_meta lnimgurl=’http://mentatul.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/01348-BigDataIsPeople-Thumb.jpg’ lnimgw=’250′ lnimgh=’250′ title=’Big Data Is People!’ desc=’What is currently a popular buzz-word is carefully disassembled and explained in proper-sized bits. There is some historical information about the field of statistics in there too, both interesting and, at times, amusing.’]

  • Conjure One – Sleep

    Conjure One – Sleep

    Singer Marie-Claire D’Ubaldo provides the dreamy landscape a song worthy of the title “Sleep” would need. But then again, this melody isn’t about sleeping at all. It’s about fire, it’s about movement, it’s about meanings hidden in plain sight, which her voice tempts the listener to find among the song’s witty lyrics. Accompanying us is the surreal yet body-moving music of Conjure One, brainchild of Rhys Fulber of Delerium fame. This is a beautifully written song in all ways a song can be so.

    “Without sleep there are no dreams
    Without dreams, we fall apart at the seams”

    YouTube (AWESOME fan-made video, using Solarstone’s chilled out remix of the song):

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1h_VqYFgTE^

    YouTube (decent quality):

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ugnv-h343gI^

    For Spotify Users (high quality):

    http://open.spotify.com/track/4BCe2h8kubZ1OUgMAWB3QH^

    For Deezer Users (high quality):

    http://www.deezer.com/track/76565333^

    This Weekly Song entry has been brought from the FaceBook archive of Weekly Song^. This exploration was originally started through a FaceBook page, about 13 months prior to launching Mentatul. Slowly but surely, the entire FaceBook archive will be brought here.

    [ax_meta lnimgurl=’http://mentatul.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/01249-ConjureOne-Thumb.jpg’ lnimgw=’250′ lnimgh=’250′ title=’Conjure One – Sleep’ desc=’This melody isn't about sleeping at all. It's about fire, it's about movement, it's about meanings hidden in plain sight.’]

  • Super-Sized Agriculture

    Super-Sized Agriculture

    On the topic of “we are what we eat”, here’s a fascinating photographic essay:

    http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/10/09/magazine/big-food-photo-essay.html^

    Regardless of what you think about “in balance with nature”, the images are quite staggering. This is one of those situations when a picture is indeed worth a thousand words. Industrialized agriculture has definitely reached some impressive heights (or lows, depending on who you ask).

    There are a lot of humans to feed on this Earth, that’s a given. However, my personal opinion is that such pictures speak at length about the way we’re abusing the ecosystem. I don’t think our agriculture is particularly impressive on the engineering side. My amazement stems from the sheer size of it all and the way it’s been optimized through the centuries. The problem is that we’re still being cruel towards creatures of all kinds.

    I choose to remain optimistic though. I put my trust in the fact that ecosystems are self-balancing things. There are many signs that we’ve started on our way to find a healthier relationship with nature. In many regions, people are having fewer children than they had hundreds of years ago when there were all sorts of risks waiting to decimate a community. Hopefully, in time, these horrendous industrial farms will disappear and we’ll see something like permaculture^ becoming widespread. Until then, at least we can try to buy organic foods^.

    [ax_meta lnimgurl=’http://mentatul.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/01346-SuperSizedAgriculture-Thumb.jpg’ lnimgw=’250′ lnimgh=’250′ title=’Super-Sized Agriculture’ desc=’On the topic of "we are what we eat", here's a fascinating photographic essay.’]

  • Savages – Adore

    Savages – Adore

    An emotional masterpiece with words so powerful they pierce through the music and reach deep within our soul. Every touch of the guitar comes at just the right moment. It’s one of those rare songs when the singing is in perfect symbiosis with the music.

    The video lifts the melody to unfathomable heights. It is audio-visual poetry at its best. My recommended journey is to first listen to the song while reading the lyrics. Only then, armed with a hint of opinion and words of knowledge, should you delve into the depths of a work of art in body language.

    It’s not often that I post the full lyrics of a song, but in this case, it’s not only recommended, but outright necessary. I discussed the meaning of the lyrics and the video with several friends and was surprised to see how much it splits the crowd.

    “If only I didn’t want the world
    I wouldn’t make you feel so sad
    I’m sure my shame would be gone
    Is it human to adore life?

    If only I’d hidden my lust
    And starved a little bit more
    If only I didn’t ask for more
    Is it human to adore life?

    I adore life

    If only I’d lived beyond regret
    I wouldn’t feel guilt for what I take
    Is it human to ask for more?
    Is it human to adore life?

    I know evil when I see it
    I know good and I just do it
    If I hadn’t been so starved
    Is it human to adore life?

    I understand the urgency of life
    In the distance there is truth which cuts like a knife
    Maybe I will die maybe tomorrow so I need to say

    I adore life

    If only I had been more shy
    And hid every tear I cried
    If only I didn’t wish to die
    Is it human to adore life?

    If only I didn’t care so much
    For the feel of your cold, cold touch
    In every bed I leave behind
    Is it human to adore life?

    I understand the urgency of life
    In the distance there is truth which cuts like a knife
    Maybe I will die maybe tomorrow so I need to say

    I adore life

    I adore life

    Do you adore life?”

    Me, yes, I must confess I adore life.

    You can purchase the album from the location below. And in case you’re wondering, yes, I did purchase Savages’ album :).

    https://savages.store-08.com/account/music/savg040002-savages-adore-life-digital/^

    YouTube (decent quality, AWESOME video):

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y7ZpPsaMNMM^

    For Spotify Users (high quality):

    https://open.spotify.com/track/43v9n2WUgrDi4Z4wiEEV8h^

    [ax_meta lnimgurl=’http://mentatul.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/01534-SavagesAdoreLife-Thumb.jpg’ lnimgw=’250′ lnimgh=’250′ title=’Savages – Adore’ desc=’A amazing song with words so powerful they pierce through the music and reach deep within our soul.’]

  • Lars Vilks’ Amazing Answer to Vandalism

    Lars Vilks’ Amazing Answer to Vandalism

    Controversial artist Lars Vilks worked for decades to maintain and champion a work of art^. Then, someone burned half of it to the ground. Regardless of the controversy surrounding the artist, his reply is the stuff of genius:

    “I have my motto ‘everything is an advantage’. You always have to find something optimistic and art that’s subjected to violence always benefits from it, you have to comfort yourself with that.

    “It gets interesting when things are happening. When you attack artworks it gets interesting. A work of art that nobody cares about disappears. This is tough action and a rather brutal form of art critique.”

    If I were the person that set that fire, I’d be fuming over this reply. Not only is it true, but it also reveals a higher form of respect towards the intricate workings of human society. Checkmate!

    http://www.thelocal.se/20161125/famous-lars-vilks-artwork-burns-to-the-ground^

    Now I just wish people won’t start vandalizing art just to make it “interesting”.

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  • Alex Smoke – 6am

    Alex Smoke – 6am

    Here’s some flowing, groovy electronica to put some spring into any late evening, work assignment or workout. Alex Smoke wastes no time during these 6 minutes of solid musical craftsmanship. The simple acoustic guitar that shows up and intertwines with the rhythm really adds to the melody. What more can be said? Nothing more needs to be said. Just sit back and enjoy the vibration.

    YouTube (decent quality):

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zrcFR7LBxvA^

    For Spotify Users (high quality):

    https://open.spotify.com/track/1fWOYbEu7M3BCg4atJnpZU^

    For Deezer Users (high quality):

    http://www.deezer.com/track/3844099^

    [ax_meta lnimgurl=’http://mentatul.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/01238-AlexSmokeIncommunicado-Thumb.jpg’ lnimgw=’250′ lnimgh=’250′ title=’Alex Smoke – 6am’ desc=’Here's some flowing, groovy electronica to put some spring into any late evening, work assignment or workout.’]