5 'Oh Canada' songs

In the light of the recent Sochi Olympic Games 2014 'tis the perfect time to write about how proud citizens and people who live in Canada are proud of their country. 

Congratulations to Canada Olympic Team which came in 3rd in the competition, earning 25 medals (10 gold, 10 silver, 5 bronze)! We are very proud of you, although you were set aside by the teams of Russia and Norway who took 1st and 2nd place accordingly. More info on medal count can be found here: http://www.sochi2014.com/en/medal-standings .

Canadian athletes won medals in the following sports: freestyle skiing, alpine skiing, bobsleigh, curling, figure skating, ice hockey, short track, snowboarding and speed skating. Great job! 

For this reason, I decided to make and share this week's playlist that features great Canadian artists. While compiling the playlist, I specified it a little bit to feature electronic and trip hop Canadian artists, such as Crystal Castles, The Weeknd, Chromeo and Dr.Draw. 

Canada has a lot to offer (ofc not only when it comes to music), but some great Canadian artists and bands include Garou, Drake, Mylene Farmer, Nelly Furtado, The Barenaked Ladies. The most well-known pop singers include Justin Bieber and Carly Rae Jepsen.

The playlist opens up with Canadian Anthem (so obvious!), followed by vibrant rhythms of Crystal Catles "Suffocation", smoothing tune "Montreal" by The Weeknd, festive beats of Chromeo's new release "Come Alive" and a finishing touch of Dr.Draw's instrumental madness "Ra Ra Ra".  

So turn your speakers really loud on and be proud of Canada!

I am Ukrainian and I Cannot Keep Calm

For a while I've been trying to avoid introducing negative topics in the blog, cos' let's be honest, everyone has a lot of shit going on. However, THIS I cannot simply omit.

I come from the Ukraine. For those of you who might not know it is a beautiful country in the Eastern Europe which has a very rich culture, nice people and which has gone through centuries of wars, tortures and selfish, moronic governors.

Starting from November 21, due to Ukrainian government's not signing the trade agreement with the EU, a number of riots emerged in Kyiv, the capital of the country, and in other cities in the Ukraine. These protest movements received the title #Euromaidan.

During 3 months of these protest actions, the situation in the country has got worse. Moreover, there is a negative tendency for the country's further development. Just think about it: citizens of the Ukraine are being killed (as for now the media reported at least 30 killed people) by the police (!) and BERKUT (security services) employees. The government headed by Viktor Yanukovych are not intending to make any concessions, respond to people's protests and fix the situation in the country. Ukraine's business is tied up, people are not working because they participate in the riots across the country. The currency is going down. More and more citizens of Ukraine are turning to embassies of foreign countries in Kyiv, because they want to leave the country as refugees. The list of these effects is nearly endless.

Furthermore, inspired by the actions of Ukrainians, people in Venezuela started their own protest movements. The situation in these two countries is very similar, but in some instances, Venezuelans are going through something even worse than Ukrainians. People in Venezuela are being kidnapped all the time, there isn't a single chance you'll be safe if you go outside. A lot of people are being killed, even more than in the Ukraine. Now, can you imagine walking into a grocery store, where there's no food? You can't buy even a pack of rice, as it is simply out of stock for more than a month! In Ukraine, this has last happened at the times of Soviet Union. In Venezuela, this is a reality today.

What is now happening in both Ukraine and Venezuela is terrifying. I would like to express my deepest respect for those Ukrainians and Venezuelans, who didn't just deal with the dreadful actions of the government and 'their' people. Thank you, those of you who stand up and fight for the brighter, safer and better future. It is amazing that you want your countries to prosper, that you want to live the life you deserve and you want to give this opportunity to the whole nation.

Just because I'm in Canada, it doesn't mean that I'm not supportive of Euromaidan. I love my country and I pray for Ukraine. For this reason, this week I want to introduce a playlist of patriotic mostly Ukrainian songs.

The first three are performed by my favourite music artist, Svyatoslav Vakarchuk, a lead singer of a Ukrainian rock band Okean Elzy. The main ideas of those songs are as follows: Vakarchuk sings that he will not surrender without a fight, we're all not alone and he asks the one to who the song is addressed to say why he/she is afraid to make the final step.

Another Ukrainian artist Skryabin wrote a song specifically devoted to the events at Euromaidan. It is included in a playlist as well.

Specifically for my Spanish-speaking readers, I include a song by an electro tango band Gotan Project. Queremos paz!

Ukrainians and Venezuelans, don't let it get you down and enjoy good music!

5 Great Romantic Songs

Love. L'amour. El amor. Lyubov'. Kohannya. There is an infinite number of ways in which you can say it and express your feelings for someone you care, be it your family, friends or your beloved, your Valentine. Yes, this week's post is related to the upcoming Saint Valentine's day.










Each and everyone of us has at least one person who he or she deeply cares about. Your boyfriend or girlfriend, your parents, children or your best friend. And in this day, the day of love, Saint Valentine's Day we tell them how much we love them. We want to make those people happy, so we something to delight them, to see them smiling. It is such a wonderful feeling, when you give and make your loved ones happy.

  The good thing about music is that it can create mood for almost everything. When it comes to romantic and love songs, it is soooo hard to choose just 5 of them to create a romantic mood. There are thousands of romantic music masterpieces. Having taken a lot of (trust me when I say this), really a lot of time, I chose 5 songs that are full of love and romance.
I should say that when it comes to love songs, nothing can beat old school music tracks. They just feel so...real and they have this internal beauty in every sound.
Speaking of the language: it does make difference. Love songs are so much better when they are performed in the three most beautiful, melodic and romantic languages: Spanish, Italian and French.

For this reason, the playlist included in this post features 2 really old and amazing songs: one by Sting and another one by U2. Sting's "Fields of Gold" is one of his masterpieces and is very pleasant to listen to. "The Ground Beneath Her Feet" by U2 is incredibly beautiful and sensual. I can't express in words how beautiful these songs are. It can only be experienced when listening to them.

As well, you will find an immortal Andrea Bocelli's hit "Besame Mucho". This song never gets old, it has lived through generations and is still very popular.

There are 2 relatively new songs in the playlist - they are simply amazing. A New York based music band Woodkid released the most romantic song of 2013 titled "I Love You". Check it out below! You will also find a very cheerful romantic song "Semplicemente" performed by an Italian band Zero Assoluto. By the way, this song was a soundtrack to a very successful Italian movie Scusa Ma Ti Chiamo Amore.

Happy Valentine's Day to everyone,

Love and be loved in return!

5 Inspirational Study Music Tracks

I hope you're not freezing because of the cold temperature and if you do, check out the previous blog post and the music featured there will get you dancing and feeling really happy.

However, this week we will listen to something different. It's February 3rd on the calendar, which means that college and university students in Canada are having their midterm exams and completing assignments this week and the week after. 

Sometimes we feel overwhelmed. Overwhelmed by the amount of information we are trying to fit into our heads. Overwhelmed by the amount of work that remains to be done. Or probably, by some other events going on in our lives.

When exam period starts, every student is in a panicking and overwhelmed condition. And this is not the worst, because when you are having that hysteria state of mind after a certain amount of hard work has been accomplished, it only means that you are very close to achieving your goal. 

In that instance, all you need is a little push. You simply have lack of inspiration. Luckily, music is one of the best sources in which to search for creative ideas. It's only logical: you start thinking a lot when you are listening to music. Diving into the depths of your subconsciousness helps you to fish out those well covered thoughts and ideas. 

This week I'm introducing you my own inspirational/study playlist which has 5 most amazing mellow electronic, trip-hop and downtempo songs. They will literally illuminate your mind with a bunch of new thoughts and ideas.

After all, brainstorming is so much better when you have great music playing in your speakers.  

Artists featured: Massive Attack, Fatboy Slim, Yonderboi, Bonobo, Pet Shop Boys. 

So headphones on, world off and good luck on your midterms!