Admiring Arnel

I've been told that I have obsessive-compulsive tendencies which I totally agree with. My folks wanted me to see a shrink once but I guess they’ve grown used to my wackiness.
Washing my hands every few minutes- lady Macbeth style. If a picture was placed in a certain angle, then a certain angle it had to be in the next time I saw it. Any slight move to objects in my bedroom would mess me up totally. I’m not that bad now. I’ve seemed to have gotten used to the fact that I can’t clean up the place or myself every waking minute.
When I think that I could have a problem or a phobia, I just take a look at the people around me and I can easily find someone waaaaay whacko than I am!

I love my job, especially the process I’m in right now. I finish most of my work in the first few hours of the day then I get myself a hot cup of tea- not nice, just hot and that really helps when you’re working in an igloo. For the rest of the day it’s me and the radio. I always tune into the Jeremy Bradley show in the afternoons and keep in touch with the music on the charts. I laugh when I think how much better my workplace is now than my previous Hellhole with a certain tight-pant boss. I really hope to last long in this place.

My mom has been trying to be really nice to me lately. Her way of making peace with whatever's happened. I actually like it and I’m going to miss it. I haven’t given up on moving out. It’s something I just have to do. But thanks maw…for all you’ve done.

This post is dedicated to Arnel Pineda. If you haven’t heard of him then you probably need to expand your daily Youtube diet to include more than just this lonely corner of the web. For those of you who are still in the dark, Arnel is the new vocalist of the band Journey. My friends and I have been watching his videos and listening to him ever since we heard about him last year. He was part of the Zoo and I have never heard anyone sing ‘Faithfully’ or ‘Roxanne’ so damn well. I’m waiting for Journey’s new album to come out – and this I believe could be their greatest album to date. As part of The Zoo, Arnel's moments of brilliance are quite obvious in each and every video.

The first time I watched a video of The Zoo - Arlen Pineda wasted no time in grabbing a hold of my mind with a subtle intimacy that is both comforting and quietly desperate. From the opening seconds of the song there exists a brilliant quality to this voice that remains mysteriously intangible after repeated listens. His songs are for everyone. Music that reaches out from someplace barely imagined yet entirely recognizable. Songs from our past that speak kindly to us even in the present. Songs that you can listen to time and again.

While some acts bring a combination of multi production and layer to their music, Arlen Pineda relies on letting art speak for itself and the magic of talent shine through.

Here's Arnel Pineda singing 'Roxanne'