Watching Battlestar Galactica in DVD quality video has been a cinematic trip by itself, for me. To imagine the kind of triumph in visual effects, story telling and sheer drama on TV is insufficient, one must watch to know what it feels like - the budgets of the Battlestar Galactica franchise must truly be astounding.

Presented here is the much favorited season 3 finale of BSG (as it’s popularly known) and I simply cannot get the theme song out of my mind. This is a rendition by composer Bear McCreary of the much covered Bob Dylan original. Do go here to listen to the CD version on youtube as well - I recommend it. You could buy the original soundtrack from Amazon, as well (much recommended).

Waiting till the season 4 start (mid 2008!?) of Battlestar Galactica is too much torture - that too, the whole franchise has yet to show up on Indian television, I doubt that it ever will, as well. The content of the show is for a bit more mature audience than what is targeted currently, at any rate.

Lyrics
“There must be some way out of here,” said the joker to the thief,
“There’s too much confusion, I can’t get no relief.
Businessmen, they drink my wine, plowmen dig my earth,
None of them along the line know what any of it is worth.”

“No reason to get excited,” the thief, he kindly spoke,
“There are many here among us who feel that life is but a joke.
But you and I, we’ve been through that, and this is not our fate,
So let us not talk falsely now, the hour is getting late.”

All along the watchtower, princes kept the view
While all the women came and went, barefoot servants, too.

Outside in the distance a wildcat did growl,
Two riders were approaching, the wind began to howl.

– All along the watchtower
Bob Dylan (1967)

Had to include this youtube video on my site when I found the live/unplugged version. This is a song by K’s Choice, a Belgium brother-sister band that features eclectic vocals backed by a mild rock sound. You might also be interested in watching the original “plugged-in” version.

It’s not a habit, it’s cool
I feel alive
If you don’t have it your on
the other side

The deeper you stick it in your vein
The deeper the thoughts there’s no more pain
I’m in heaven, I’m a god
I’m everywhere, I feel so hot

It’s not a habit, it’s cool
I feel alive
If you don’t have it your on
the other side
I’m not an addict (maybe that’s a lie)

It’s over now, I’m cold, alone
I’m just a person on my own
Nothing means a thing to me
Oh, nothing means a thing to me

It’s not a habit, it’s cool
I feel alive
If you don’t have it your on
the other side
I’m not an addict (maybe that’s a lie)

Free me, leave me
Watch me as I’m going down
Free me, see me

Look at me I’m falling
And I’m falling………

It is not a habit, it is cool
I feel alive I feel…….
It is not a habit, it is cool
I feel alive

It’s not a habit, it’s cool
I feel alive
If you don’t have it your on
the other side
I’m not an addict (maybe that’s a lie)

I’m not an addict, I’m not an addict, I’m not an addict.

- K’s Choice
“Not an Addict”

This guy is so tricked out, seeing is believing. I’ve seen the video around 5 times, and I still can’t believe some of the stunts this guy does with his yoyo are real. Tell me what you think.

When I found the music video to one of my favorite songs on Youtube, I couldn’t resist posting the vid, here. The song is Nothing to fear by the inimitable Chris Rea, and the video looks to be about a bedouin tribe and also an arab village-town and is a stylized, idyllic take of the life there.

As an aside, have a look at the screenshot below, of the google result. Google, post its acquisition of YouTube finally seems to be listing results from the videos there directly in the search results, that’s how I found the video in the first place!

Could you do without?

That’s the question that NBC’s Today show special posed to Dennis Kneale from Forbes. He let them take away his cellphone, blackberry and email for a whole week. He lasted 3 days before giving up, teary-eyed. Watch the video to see Dennis’ plight.

In these days of cellphone network congestion, I meet and know a lot of people who depend on not one but two cellphones. Not having both cellphones with them for a whole work week would be quite close to their worst nightmare, I think.

via Sanjay, Gizmodo

All around me are familiar faces,
Worn out places,
Worn out faces,
Bright and early for the daily races,
Going nowhere,
Going nowhere,
Their tears are filling up their glasses,
No expression,
No expression,
Hide my head I wanna drown my sorrow,
No tomorrow,
No tomorrow,
And I find it kind of funny,
I find it kind of sad,
The dreams in which I’m dying are the best I’ve ever had,
I find it hard to tell you,
I find it hard to take,
When people run in circles,
It’s a very very,
Mad world,
Mad world,
Children waiting for the day they feel good,
Happy birthday,
Happy birthday,
And I feel the way that every child should,
Sit and listen,
Sit and listen,
Went to school and I was very nervous,
No one knew me,
No one knew me,
Hello teacher tell me what’s my lesson,
Look right through me,
Look right through me,
And I find it kind of funny,
I find it kind of sad,
The dreams in which I’m dying are the best I’ve ever had,
I find it hard to tell you,
I find it hard to take,
When people run in circles,
It’s a very very,
Mad world,
Mad world,
Enlarging your world,
Mad world

–
I originally found this haunting song when I saw Donnie Darko, a movie that is best left unexplained - I must recommend it be watched when you are quite sure that you want to screw up your head for a day, or two, or more.

When I first saw the movie, I didn’t quite catch on to the song, although I do remember looking for it.

Then, in a recent gameplay trailer for Gears of War, the XBox 360 game, I heard it again and did some research and voila!

It’s a sad song, very thought provoking. Makes quite a few people wanna drip a tear or two.

Originally by Tears for Fears, this rendition by Gary Jules for the movie is much slower and disturbing. Watch the video, tell me what you think.