John Mayer: Continuum


MAYER FINDS THE MIDDLE GROUND

John Mayer was 24 when he released the commercially successful Room for Squares, which was filled to the plastic with sensitive acoustic pop-rock, This earned him a huge college coffeehouse following in the US and prompted many to label him as a Dave Matthews clone. It’s been five years long since, and the college sophomores who painstakingly learned to play “Your Body is a Wonderland” to woo pretty, virginal John Mayer fanatics have all graduated and left their worn-out copies of Room for Squares collecting dust on their CD shelves.

Not that John Mayer would mind, really. It might be the realization that the new breed of sensitive college kids would rather drink themselves into heartbroken stupors over the wailing of Chris Carraba, or maybe, Mr. Mayer decided that the two semesters he spent at Berklee College of Music were being wasted if he were just to become another Dave Matthews wannabe. It was already evident, even in Room for Squares and his 2003 release Heavier Things that his guitar chops ---- even on an acoustic ---- were being put shamefully to waste.

In 2005, John Mayer announced that he would be “closing up shop on acoustic sensitivity.” This was shortly before he put up The John Mayer Trio with Steve Jordan on drums and Pino Palladino on bass and released the live heavily-blues-influenced Try.

Fans who still yearn for Mayer’s acoustic boy sensitivities will be glad to hear that the singer/guitarist has finally decided to settle on the middle ground between straight blues and jazz and pop rock with his latest installment, Continuum. The 12-track disc sees the more mature musician melding excellent guitar work with some of his most poignant songs yet. The post-pubescent yearnings for love are replaced by a stab at society, politics (“Waiting for the World to Change,” “Belief”) and failed relationships (“Slow Dancing in a Burning Room,” “Dreaming with a Broken Heart”) His trademark falsetto, though, can be distracting, especially in his remake of the Hendrix classic “Bold as Love,” a track saved only by Mayer’s long, engaging guitar solo. Proper breathing technique and the possibility of extended puberty aside, deft guitar work and hummable blues-infused melodies characterized each track in Continuum, making it the perfect date when you’d rather sit home alone and laze around to music that isn’t dumb pap, nor so cerebral that you feel compelled to philosophize on the meaning of life around it. Continuum strikes a good middle ground between smart, classy ear candy and mindless pop and it’s a good and comfortable place for Mayer to be in for a while. ---Clarissa Concio

I really love reading books. And Bob Ong's one of my favorite local author. He's really good. With books like ABNKKBSNPLKo?!, Paboritong LIbro ni Hudas, Bakit Baligtad Magbasa ng Libro Ang Mga Pilipino?, Alamat ng Gubat and his latest, Stainless Longganisa.

I just finished the book this afternoon. And its really good. (but ABNKKBSNPLKo? is still my favourite.)
For those who are familiar to him, we all know that his books are related to our country, politics, crisis and a lot of humor. And it really suits my taste

Here's a part from Stainless Longganisa.

Isipin mo na lang kung hindi naging palabasa ang mga Pilipino noong panahon ni Rizal. Taong 1887, mainit-init pa ang Noli Me Tangere. Nagkaroon ng kopya ang ilang tao.

Pinoy 1: Noli Me Tangere?
Pinoy 2: Nobela yata yan, pare. Boring yan!
Pinoy 1: Tama, para ngang nakakatamad basahin.
Pinoy 2: Paalipin na lang tayo sa mga Kastila!
Pinoy 1: Sige. Kahit na ninakaw ng mga Guardia Civil ang mga alaga kong manok kanina at iPod shuffle.
Pinoy 2: Rock on!

Wha??
That really made me think. Oh man.

Anyway, the book's not pricey at all. P150 bucks lang ..

Sitti Navarro is a local Pinay who’s just in her tender twenties, with more than ten years of singing expertise to back her up. Sitti, whose name means princess in the Muslim dialect, is truly worthy of her bossa babe title. Lithe, smart and pretty, Sitti was weaned onto song in the usual Pinoy manner: Goaded by relatives, she’d sing a couple of Whitney Houston torchers at family gatherings. The former core commander would also join singing contests and was very active in the school choir.


After graduating from high school in 2001, her neighbor, pianist and accompanist Romy San Mateo, scouted the young business economics major out, and asked if she wanted to sing at the Stonehouse jazz bar. She has also landed gigs at other lounge spots, such as Kalesa Bar and the Richmond and Makati Shangri-la Hotels, besides hosting events and touring island destinations in the Philippines in Studio23’s The Travel Show. Sitti was made to sing bossa nova.Her relaxed singing style and soothing voice lingers above the complex harmonies of the jazz and samba influenced Brazilian genre, effortlessly gelling lyric and music together. Sitti’s eyes light up when she talks about music, especially bossa.


In 2004, Sitti got another big break, this time as a recording artist for Warner Music Philippines. After hearing a few demos from Sitti, the major label decided to cut her a solo record. In 2005, Sitti found herself recording her debut album, Café Bossa. “I want people in my age bracket to be aware about jazz and bossa nova, and that there’s more to music besides the standard pop and R&B,” shares Sitti.


New converts and long time bossa fans alike will not be disappointed by Sitti’s debut offering. Café Bossa is indeed a cup of chill in 18 choice tracks. It’s a must-hear album of laid-back tunes done in the warm sounds of OPM’s bossa babe.