hands in hearts, hearts in hands: florence, you've got the love.

Florence + the Machine is:
so much more meaningful and restorative than Evanescence; so theatrical, yet more believable than Lady GaGa; not as down and dirty as Amy Winehouse; maybe a little Indigo Girls' "Galileo" times a thousand.

With her vividly odd music videos, eclectic personal style and voice of some wonderous wolf-hunter-banshee hybrid, there's no shortage of things to say about Florence Welch. The Machine (made up of an ever-changing lineup of musicians including Robert Ackroyd and Isabella Summers) is a force to be reckoned with as well.

From "Cosmic Love" extending throughout the entire Lungs, during the Florence + the Machine experience, I feel like I'm running through the forest under water in space. Each track is transformative and so emotive; so heavy and light at the same time. It's the perfect example of that Radiohead refrain, "everything all of the time".

Every song is sung with such conviction and power that the listener pretty much runs through every emotion imaginable.

your songs remind me of swimming, which I forgot when I started to sink.

 there's a drumming noise that starts when you're around/I swear that you could hear it, It makes such an almighty sound

the stars, the moon, they have all been blown out

Florence's style is indeed eclectic. She says she likes church music, which is evident throughout Lungs, where many a track sounds like poundings on an organ (the instrument, a body).  She also cites Grace Slick as an influence and loves music that sounds big. She even has done a cover of Beyonce's "Halo".

Simply put, Lungs gives chills and enlightenment with each track. I can't wait to experience the intensity that is Florence + the Machine firsthand (sold out performance at 9:30 Club, Tues., April 6).

V is for Valentino

There is nothing quite like the extravagance of haute couture. As Valentino: The Last Emperor explores the remarkable 45-year career of Valentino Garavani, it reminds us that fashion is all about fantasy, extravagance and dreams. It makes me wish I had the lifestyle to dress in evening gowns every day.
 
Aside from the dresses, there are little moments throughout this documentary that bring a smile to your face. I especially love it when lifelong partner and friend, Giancarlo Giammetti calls Valentino fat after Valentino calls his background set of sand dunes ridiculo, or when Valentino asks Giancarlo about a speech he just gave, and Giancarlo replies that he's too tan.

The camera mostly follows Giancarlo, but there are moments when you get a glimpse of the very private Valentino's personality, such as when he's speaking about Matteo Marzotto:

After so many decades, after so much work, after so much freedom, you can imagine me accepting the Marzotto telling me not to do this, not to do that? I would eat that man.

The documentary culminates with a 45 year celebration of the fashion legend at the Ara Pacis in Rome, a showcase that is of course, very dramatic and over the top. Appropriately so. The Last Emperor is a retrospective not only of a fashion icon but also of a dream, an art brought to life.

Netflix it

I love documentaries. They make everyday-life interesting. And netflix makes a hard day or lazy weekend bearable.  If you're looking to enhance your amount of random knowledge and impress people when you actually feel like hanging out with them, I highly recommend the following:

the botany of desire (2009), 120 min., USA - Who knew apples had such a back story and that marijuana production has gotten so resourceful?

how to cook your life (2007), 94 min., USA; 100 min., Germany - A Californian man with a lot of ridiculous emotions (including crying over a tea pot) cooks his way to zen. When you cut the tomatoes, cut the tomatoes.

planet b-boy (2007), 95 min., USA - See Do-Knock before he made it to ABDC fame and get schooled on how Asians are totally ruling the b-boy arena.

rize (2005), 86 min., USA - Visually stunning. The epitome of what a documentary can be with big funding (at least, technically).