RIP - Mr Trololol

It seems that all I tend to do these days is mourn the passing of greats and while this particular artist was old and obscure, it's only recently that he has grown famous and beloved by fans around the world.

Eduard Khil, otherwise known as Mr Trololol, died of a stroke in St. Petersburg today, aged 77 years old. A Soviet-era singer with an strong and versatile singing voice, Eduard shot to internet stardom following the widespread adoption of one of his music videos, "I Am So Happy to Finally Be Back Home", as the anthem of trolling on 4chan and beyond in the mid to late 2000s.

This prompted the singer to come out of retirement and begin singing publically again, with television appearances in russian shows. In an interview asking for his thoughts about the video and the reasons behind his success, he said:

"I'm loving it, people doing parodies, having fun; it unites them. The internet can help share happiness: it connects generations. I came to love the internet"

Eduard, your very excellent reaction to people enjoying your music on the internet is inspiring to all of us. If you can't have a laugh and poke fun at your own work, there's not much point in this life.

Goodnight, sweet prince.

More reading and nice video at Russia Today:

http://rt.com/art-and-culture/news/trololo-dead-stroke-stpetersburg-898/

The original:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oavMtUWDBTM

What's Going On/What's Happening Brother? - Marvin Gaye

Every now and again, I get a little bit upset that musicians who have given an awful lot of awesome output to the world have been taken from us too soon. Marvin Gaye is one such person and this live performance of his award winning single What's Going On from the album of the same name goes to show that a song to the backdrop of drug abuse, rising taxes, police brutality, war and pollution is as relevant now as it ever was. 

Marvin Gaye was one day away from 45 when he was fatally shot by his father in 1984; just under one year before I was born. Rest in peace.

Cannon Fodder Main Theme (Jon Hare)

An excellent, down right fun top down war-themed shooter/strategy game that I only got properly acquainted with once I had the Mega Drive version, but I digress. I first came into contact with this title on the Atari ST and played the demo to death. There's a certain sense of pleasure in the easy controls, no-nonsence game style here: guide between one to four troops around a themed map (jungles, ice plains and deserts) and shoot the living crap out of everything. Later levels heralded RPGs, rocket launchers and more grenades than you could shake a stick at.