finding cain

My first apartment was in Malate, and calling it “small” would be generous. I lived there with two girls and one guy, and to this day, I genuinely don’t know how we all fit. It felt like a magic trick. Or a health hazard. We were a musical mess. One roommate lived and breathed ’70s classics. Another was permanently blasting Korn and Slipknot. One survived solely on cheesy love songs. And me? I was floating somewhere between new wave and folk rock, pretending that made sense. Somehow, despite the noise and the chaos, we all lived together in this weird, mismatched harmony. No murders. No lawsuits. A win, honestly. My music taste now is nothing like it was in my twenties. Not even close. But I’ll always be grateful to Jacqueline for introducing me to this song in particular. It was playing when I woke up from a very memorable sleep in 2002. I was 21, half-awake, probably confused about life, and that song stuck. It still hasn’t let go.

Some pop songs are built to last. Boy Meets Girl's 1988 single, Waiting for a Star to Fall , is one of them. But here's the entertaining twist: no one wanted it. Songwriters Shannon Rubicam and George Merrill were already successful, having penned massive hits for Whitney Houston. Naturally, they offered the song to her, but in a famously baffling moment, her label boss, Clive Davis, said no. The song then floated to Belinda Carlisle, who even cut a demo, but she passed. Instead of shelving the track, Rubicam and Merrill made an act of quiet defiance: they recorded it themselves. That leap of faith changed everything. Their own version became a global smash and their one unforgettable entry into pop immortality.

Ezra Collective's No One's Watching Me with Olivia Dean has really grabbed my attention, even though it was released a year ago. I've been playing it at least twice a day for a straight week. Maybe it's the tune, the rhythm, or the words—I just know it's a total earworm. This song is a rare blend of mellow and energetic. The secret is that killer horn opening, which immediately establishes a contagious, upbeat vibe that carries through the entire track. Olivia's smoky, soulful vocals then glide over the music, adding a touch of pure sultry goodness. The track is held together by a fantastic, steady backbeat that never lets up, even during the impressive trumpet solo. The London quintet's Afrobeat-infused style really shines here, propelled by a funky bassline and gentle synth keys. The interplay between the intermittent horn flourishes and Dean's voice is absolutely perfect. It's a truly masterful and vibrant arrangement.

It's a week late, but I wanted to wish a Happy Birthday to Faith Hill. My wife has been a fan of her music for years, and honestly, who can blame her? On the zillion-to-one chance that Mrs. McGraw ever sees this blog, I'd like to remind her that the world abounds in people who know her songs by heart, and can and will sing them at the slightest provocation.

   A number of interesting things happened in 1979, the year I was born. For instance, on November 4, 1979, the Iran hostage crisis began. Have you seen Argo starring Ben Affleck? That movie is pretty much about it. The next month, the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan. Also in 1979, the first Sony Walkman was released in Japan. Margaret Thatcher became the first female Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, and Skylab made a dramatic return to Earth. The year also saw the release of a number of iconic movies, including Alien , Apocalypse Now , and Mad Max . That year, Dire Straits unleashed Sultans of Swing . The four-minute track wasn't just a song; it was a revolution. The musicianship is impeccable, the lyrics engrossing, and the entire song doesn't sound dated. It transcends genres and eras, proving that true artistry never fades. In high school, I’d sit on a couch and listen endlessly to Mark Knopfler’s intricate guitar solo and pretended I understood what “blowing Dixie,...

What I love about the Malaysian-born singer-songwriter is her knack for crafting those sad/happy songs – music that makes you want to cry and hit the dance floor at the same time. Chloe writes about love, anxiety, and self-acceptance with such wit and honesty. Her beauty is also undeniable – a perfect blend of modern allure and timeless Asian elegance. Her looks shine through with such grace and an effortlessly cool confidence. Here is my favorite.

You know that feeling when you stumble upon an old movie you haven't seen in years? It's like finding a dusty photo album and flipping through the pages, only instead of bad hairstyles, you're greeted with hideous special effects and awful dialogue. Also, the dramatic tension I remembered as nail-biting was now… well, a little slow-paced. But the truly entertaining part of rewatching a movie is that you notice things you never did before. For example, in Midnight Cowboy , I didn't know that the guy who gave Joe Buck (Jon Voight) a blow job was played by Bob Balaban, who later became known for his role as Russell Dalrymple, the fictional president of NBC in Seinfeld . Released in 1969, Midnight Cowboy is a raw, sometimes uncomfortable, often heartbreaking, but ultimately deeply human. And seriously, the chemistry between Ratso Rizzo (Dustin Hoffman) and Buck is pure gold. Rewatching a movie is like visiting an old friend. You know their idiosyncrasies, their stories, bu...

Reggie Pearl deserves more recognition. I really like her music and I struggled to pick a song to recommend if you somehow only have the time to listen to one. But “Moldavite” blew me away the first time I heard it, and I hope you will love it too.

If you wanted to be considered uncool in the '90s admit that you were a Take That fan. Luckily, I have always been uncool so there was no lowering of my reputation whenever I told that I love Gary Barlow's voice (and his chuwariwaps) and didn't give a f*ck who knew it.

I'm going to do something I love doing here on Finding Cain — taking you back to the early 90s when everything was cool. Today's time machine post concerns English group and sort of one-hit-wonders, Stereo MC's. Perhaps this will distract you, however briefly.

Because it's that kind of day, and because why not, and because, actually, it's kind of awesome, here is the album cover for Stone Temple Pilots' debut album Core , recreated in LEGO by Adnan Lotia . Did you know Core is actually 29 years old now? I bet if you turned on your radio you'd be able to hear it playing somewhere. "I wanna run through your wicked garden heard that's the place to find you/ 'Cause I'm alive so alive now, I know the darkness blinds you." Is it really just Wednesday? Anyway, enjoy. Stone Temple Pilots' Debut 'Core' Turns 25

I have a confession to make: I love this track. I remember sitting on the grass of Puerta del Parian in Intramuros listening to my friend shout the song's "I'm not sick but I'm not well. And I'm so hot 'cause I'm in hell" line as loud as he did and louder than I could. 24 years have passed since Flagpole Sitta's release. Its online popularity, relative to every other song from the 90s, is a sound indication for whether it will be remembered by our children's children.

If you're interested in serious Carnatic music, then the veena player and vocalist Ramana Balachandhran is absolutely outstanding. Just sit back, listen, and take in your emotional response.

When I was ten years old, David Bowie convinced me that I ought to lose my virginity on the beach. I saw the video for China Girl six years after it launched on MTV, the same year that I began watching The Simpsons . It was the source of my lifelong thing for Asian women with luscious red lips and bizarre make-up. Speaking of Bowie, I was online today and came across this post from Interview Magazine .

I am not, nor have I ever been a fan of The Pretty Reckless — not that there's anything wrong with the band, just, what's to like about their music? Wait, is there something to like? But I do have a serious thing for Taylor Momsen. I like her face and hair, her attitude and her sexuality and because she played the role of Cindy Lou Who in How the Grinch Stole Christmas .

Did you ever listen to Faith No More? I did when I was in high school and this morning I wondered, "Did they sound awful?" So I listened to some tunes and the answer is sometimes they sounded atrocious, but King for a Day... Fool for a Lifetime has moments of enjoyability. Here's a song from that album.

As kids, we were all too busy appreciating how good Simon Le Bon looked in his jacket or trying to imitate his dance moves to ever give a f*ck about his lyrics. New Moon on Monday (1983) "Shake up the picture the lizard mixture with your dance on the eventide You got me coming up with answers all of which I deny I said it again but could I please rephrase it, maybe I can catch a ride I couldn't really put it much plainer but I'll wait 'til you decide" The Chauffeur (1982) "The aphids swarm up in the drifting haze Swim seagull in the sky Towards that hollow western Isle My envied lady holds you fast in her gaze" The Reflex (1984) "The reflex is a lonely child, who's waiting by the park The reflex is in charge of finding treasure in the dark And watching over lucky clover, isn't that bizarre? And every little thing the reflex does Leaves you answered with a question mark" Come Undone (1993) "Mine, immaculate dream made breath and ski...

Thom Yorke has released a slowed-down, nine-minute version of Radiohead's debut single Creep . It doesn't sound great, but if you're the kind of person who falls all over himself at every new Thom Yorke remix, I think you will appreciate it.

For some reason I am highly susceptible to earworms. "And baby pulls her hair for a Vicodin. She falls flat on the bed again, mutters something about the end while covering her eyes with both her hands." The title is Guts , from Swedish singer-songwriter Augustine, and I was stuck with this song for nearly six hours before it finally went away. Researchers still haven't figured out what causes earworms, but according to science there are five ways to get rid of them .

I graduated high school in 1996. While I was there, the radio station that almost everyone on campus listened to was 97.1 WLS FM. It was a good station if you liked hearing the most popular songs of the present played over and over with occasional '80s hits.  I had a crush on a certain girl who was a big fan of The Heights…so one day I tuned my radio to LS and waited for How Do You Talk to an Angel to play. I positioned my portable recorder near the speaker and poised my fingers over the record button to capture the song and give the tape to her. It was a respectable hit back in 1993. I just felt like watching this today so I might as well share it with you.