My Top Albums of 2015

One of my favourite things is BACK! At the end of each year, I love to recap the music in which I've spent countless of hours getting lost in. Whether it be travelling, surfing the web, mowing the lawn, or on the road in the vehicle.

Volunteering at the Winnipeg Folk Festival as well as heading down to Wisconsin for the inaugural Eaux Claires Music & Arts Festival were hands down my musical highlights of the year. Those two weeks yielded unforgettable memories with friends and opened up new discoveries toward influential artists.

I usually include honourable mentions in these posts... however, I believe this is my 6th year doing this, so I might as well go all out and do a TOP 20! You'd think a top 15 would suffice, being 2015 and all, but it's been an outstanding year of music (as always in our day and age). With 2015 being a breakthrough year of mass streaming, I can only wish to listen to the endless amount of music that is available to us. That being said, I'm addicted to Spotify and the many musical trails it holds. Thankfully, with its help I managed to provide you a favourite track per artist/group! So let's get to it!

HERE WE GO:

20. Aero Flynn // Aero Flynn

Read the short essay on the aeroflynn.org homepage, which jump starts with: "It is 2002 in Eau Claire, Wisconsin upstairs in a rented student house and Justin Vernon is in my arms weeping, saying, 'I just want my band back.'"

19. Jamie xx // In Colour

The musical and rhythmic engine of The xx, Jamie churns out hauntingly atmospheric and chilling electronics in his solo debut release.

18. CHVRCHES // Every Open Eye

This Glasgow trio will impress you by gently smacking you in the face with a mike, beat pad, and synth. Their sophomore album will leave you robotically emotional in the best way possible.

17. Josh Garrels // Home

An orchestral, soulful, singer/songwriting sensation. Home finds a warm place in our hearts. Just listen to the harp in this track and try telling me that it doesn't.

16. Joel Plaskett // The Park Avenue Sobriety Test

Want to really know what the Canadiana genre means? In The Park Avenue Sobriety Test, Joel Plaskett personally takes you down to his hometown bar and feeds you maritime musical shots until you fall off your barstool.

15. Lord Huron // Strange Trails

Plug in your ear buds for an adventurous day of exploring. A vast forest of trees whips by in a blur as you bike through newly discovered trails... Hopefully they don't become too strange for you.

14. Gungor // One Wild Life: Soul

Ones to opt for a 'season pass' of musical gifts and wonder for their fans and followers, Michael and Lisa Gungor—a husband-and-wife duo—take us on a spiritual journey with the One Wild Life series. Soul is the first voyage of three, with Spirit and Body slated for the new year. Can't wait.

13. Patrick Watson // Love Songs For Robots

Grooving bass-lines, soaring riffs, and floating falsettos... Should I say more? Please, just listen to "Bollywood."

12. Half Moon Run // Sun Leads Me On

Imitating Half Moon Run's vocal dips, trails, and lifts proves very difficult, yet is extremely rewarding when sung on point. They know a thing or two about a powerful build, might I add.

11. Tame Impala // Currents

Psychedelic, infused pop/rock that makes you strut down the street in bell-bottoms and a shirtless vest. Flick up those shades when you say hi to that pretty lady walking by.

10. Oh Wonder // Oh Wonder

Anthony & Josephine make up the subdued, electro-soul duo Oh Wonder. Together, their mission was to write, record, and release a single each month for a year. I'd say they've succeeded and surpassed their wildest expectations. By singing powerfully in unison throughout the entire collection, they've mesmerized their listeners over the course of 2015 as if by hypnosis; becoming globally viral before their finished product (an aggregate album of singles) even dropped. One more thing to boot: Oh Wonder managed to sell out upcoming tour dates in New York City, Paris, London, Amsterdam, and Los Angeles before ever performing live.

9. JR JR // JR JR

The duo formerly known as Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. recently eclipsed the Dale Earnhardt prefix (to avoid any angry mix-ups between them and the famous NASCAR driver's fans). Consequently, they've blossomed into their own distinctive (more attractive) moniker. Fizzy, galvanizing, electro-soul goodness is only the beginning. Turn up that dial to electrify your Sunday drive with "Break My Fall." Or if you'd rather relax in the backseat with your headphones on while your driver and front-passenger chat loudly, mellow-out to "James Dean" or "Listening to Outkast, June 23, 2014."

8. Ben Folds // So There

Ben Folds' satirical and humorous lyrics meet grandiose, orchestral magnificence... a match made in... well, Ben Folds' brilliant mind. So There manages to encapsulate bitter love-songs within symphonic instrumentation (courtesy of New York City's classical sextet yMusic) resulting in a creative whirlwind of indie pop/rock and chamber music. Not to mention it concludes with a three-movement piano concerto featuring the Nashville Symphony. Sheer musical GENIUS!

7. Dawes // All Your Favorite Bands

My inner Dawes fanboy was freaking out this Summer when I witnessed the Dawes boys shuffle to their bus backstage at the Winnipeg Folk Fest. Roots rock combined with reflective heart-wrenching lyrics... Raise a glass and empty your lungs! Ahhhh... flip the record and repeat. If you love guitar solos, there're plenty to tickle your fancy in All Your Favorite Bands.

6. Jon Foreman // The Wonderlands: Sunlight, Shadows, Darkness, & Dawn

Jon Foreman, perhaps more known for being Switchfoot's frontman, wields his acoustic guitar and unique, impactful vocals ever so impressively with life's meaning and love as his message. The Wonderlands consists of four EPs which were released over the course of 2015; 24 tracks (one for each hour of the day), all individually co-produced by various artists and friends of Jon. This collection definitely deserves a continual listen, he's got the musical midas touch!

5. EL VY // Return to the Moon

Matt Berninger of The National has lent his inquisitive baritone vocals to the talented, does-it-all Brent Knopf (of Menomena and Ramona Falls) on this project, which was a decade in the making. Matt's wit meshes superbly well with Brent's imaginative arrangements. From angst ("I'm the Man to Be") to retrospective ("No Time to Crank the Sun") in a gradual heartbeat, Return to the Moon provides a complete emotional spectrum for you to gauge your present feelings.

4. Fyfe // Control

Under the moniker Fyfe, Paul Dixon has stuck it to the man after being dropped by his previous record label. The UK native, as his album art suggests, paints a complex and intricate canvass of himself in this album. Electronic, choral, and orchestral elements with hip-hop beats make Control an instant favourite. Releasing an acoustic EP of a select few was also a pleasant touch: LISTEN HERE.

3. Sufjan Stevens // Carrie & Lowell

Sufjan has tugged at my heartstrings once again. Returning to his folk roots, this extremely honest, open, and personal record was inspired by the death of his mother. Every time it's played it has me figuratively bawling in a glass case of emotion. Charming strumming and grainy swells underlie Sufjan's eccentric lyrics, calming melodies, and oohs and ahhs. Anyone up for some star-gazing?

2. The Staves // If I Was

"The best singers in the world," exclaims Bon Iver's Justin Vernon, who produced and features in The Staves' captivating If I Was LP. Let Watford's proud trio of silky smooth, serenading sisters take over your evenings by the fireplace on these frigid winter nights. Enjoy their intensifying builds with a hot cocoa in hand and a cozy blanket nestled up to your chin.

AND MY #1 ALBUM OF 2015 IS...
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1. Bear's Den // Islands

Ladies and gentlemen, YET ANOTHER GEM out of the United Kingdom. London's indie folk trio Bear's Den will swarm your community and invade the hearts of many by way of humble gladness. The results are exhilarating: Brass and banjo please the ears beyond compare! Just listen to "Elysium," "Think of England," and "Above the Clouds of Pompeii." Such complementary instruments to a vocal cornerstone. Keep your ears and eyes wide open for these loveable, bearded men at a venue near you.

If you want a complete playlist of ALL these albums, jump over to SPOTIFY and check out My Top Albums of 2015 playlist! Give me a follow as well if so inclined: MANNGOOSSE.

I also curated a smaller Favourites of 2015 playlist for the handful of songs I really adored from these spectacular albums. It consists of two songs from each of these 20 albums for a condensed listen (with the exception of The Wonderlands, one from each EP)!

Thanks for reading! As always let me know what you think and suggest away on the albums I missed.

I'm looking forward to an incredible year of music in 2016!

MOST IMPORTANTLY, HAVE A SAFE AND FUN NEW YEAR'S EVE!

CHEERS.

-MG

O Come O Come Emmanuel

I guess I took a Summer AND Fall vacation from blogging... SURPRISE… I’m BACK this Christmas season bearing musical gifts. By the way, I will get to my annual top albums of the year soon, but first I'd like to share my latest cover that has been stored away for sometime. Last Christmas I performed one of my favourite hymns for this beloved season with two friends at our church's Christmas Eve service: "O Come O Come Emmanuel." I recorded it last Christmas on my own and came back to it only now to apply the finishing touches for your beautiful ears.

I've been working digitally on my own projects because it is all I have available to me for what I want to do at the moment. However, there's always something magical about a live music tone and feeling. That's why I tracked everything live for this Christmas classic (to the best of my abilities). The only pseudo-exception was the piano, since my upright is sadly insoluble tuning-wise—she literally defies any professional tuning attempts, to my dismay. Consequently, I miked my amp on the keyboard recording resulting in a crackling sibilance that felt rough and imperfect for a desired outcome.

Anyway, listen for yourselves and I hope you enjoy!

(Thanks to my sis Jess for the festive cover art!)

May you all have a very Merry Christmas this year!
Peace & Love,

-MG

*p.s. Download it for FREE if you feel so inclined to add it to your holiday playlist!

I wouldn't mind that ;)

The Searchlight Experience

Well, that was that. I was knocked out in the Regional Finals but I am extremely happy with the response I received and the result I finished with. TOP TEN IN MANITOBA!! Everyone who voted were patient/dedicated and the support was truly heartfelt and unbelievable. So thanks first and foremost to YOU, the voting people, the best I could've asked for. Secondly, thanks to CBC for the opportunity and the platform to jump-start my presence as an artist. Thirdly, thanks to the amazing artists and friendly people I met along the way who voted for me; ranging from Vancouver to St. John's to Cambridge Bay up in Nunavut!

I'll throw it back to a Life Lesson for what I learned in this experience:

Be honest and do not be afraid to be vulnerable in doing what you love,

for people will respect that and support you for it.

"Step Into the Light" is essentially a prayer, one of seeking purpose and belonging. 

Hopefully a part of my purpose is to keep making music. Stay tuned as I stow away and stir up a few musical ventures in the works.

CHEERS.

MUCH LOVE.

SEARCHLIGHT REGIONAL FINALS!

We are IN... TOP TEN in Winnipeg's region, that is. Next stop: NUMBER ONE IN MANITOBA! We can do it. Keep UP your DAILY VOTE and let's get more and more people on board. Voting for this last regional round ends again on Monday, April 27th @ 2pm CENTRAL TIME.

VOTE HERE: http://music.cbc.ca/#!/artists/Manny-Goossen

Something I've noticed is that a lot of entries are from bands or artists who have already had a crack at this competition, or have been established as a group for a few years already. The motto of CBC's contest is "The Hunt for Canada's Best NEW Artist"... So let's prove that motto in this year's results!

Also, I keep getting asked what the actual prize is for winning CBC's 2015 Searchlight Contest...

1) $20,000 of YAMAHA MUSIC EQUIPMENT... THINK OF THE POSSIBILTIES!
2) A spot in CBC's upcoming MUSIC FESTIVAL... WOAH.
3) LIVE/VIDEO RECORDING of my song! Chea.

AND

4) EXPOSURE, this contest has jump-started me in promoting and writing my own music (which treads constantly in my mind by the way), and this contest platform has been incredible.

... I mean, the national top 5 are also announced on Q by the amazing SHAD... So please make this dream happen, VOTE DAILY! I am at your mercy :) - http://music.cbc.ca/#!/artists/Manny-Goossen ‪

#VOTEMANNY

Did you hear that you can also win sweet Yamaha prizes for voting? Hashtag #VoteSearchlight on social media to enter, or fill in the entry form EVERYDAY to increase your chances - http://music.cbc.ca/#!/blogs/2015/3/Enter-to-Win-Searchlights-Yamaha-Fan-Giveaway

We NEED more people on our amazing bandwagon if we are to achieve #1 in Manitoba. Please keep up your dedication to "Step Into the Light"! Your overall patience throughout this entire period has been APPRECIATED.

MUCH LOVE and MUCH THANKS,

CHEERS,

- MG

STEP INTO THE LIGHT // MUSIC VIDEO

It's finally OUT! "Step Into the Light" in music video form for CBC's Searchlight competition is spreading. I'll write a little bit about how it all came together below.

ENJOY!

Big thanks to every single person involved with this project: Jyles Klassen (video production | vimeo.com/jyles), Elan Mueller (lead actor), Event Light lighting (eventlight.ca), and the Hamptons (location). And of course thank you to our beautiful extras: Tali Floom, Jona Frohlich, Cameron Friesen, Glen Hampton, Joel Janke, Jon Janke, Jessica Mueller, Kelsey Mueller, and Juan Schujman.

The incredible locations we shot within include the lovely Sandy Bay area on Lake Winnipeg and nearby forest, as well as in Whiteshell Provincial Park.

I am currently in the Regional Semi-Final for Winnipeg!

Voting ENDS for this round tomorrow, April 20th at 2pm CT! 

So please VOTE—http://music.cbc.ca/artists/Manny-Goossen—today and tomorrow to get "Step Into the Light" into the REGIONAL FINAL!

p.s. Follow @mannygoossen on SoundCloud, Twitter & Instagram:
soundcloud.com/mannygoossen
twitter.com/mannygoossen
instagram.com/mannygoossen

Like Manny Goossen Music on Facebook:
facebook.com/mannygoossenmusic

Subscribe to Manny Goossen Music on YouTube:
youtube.com/mannygoossen

#MannyMusicVideo?!

WE'RE IN THE SECOND ROUND PEOPLE! Exciting times. Only 4 more days until the Regional Finals of Searchlight (April 20th). Yes, the time is near, so please keep your daily votes coming! http://music.cbc.ca/#!/artists/Manny-Goossen APPRECIATED.

BUT NOW... In order to keep our campaign fresh, we've decided to produce a new visual for my song. Here is a sneak peek of our "Step Into the Light" music video we've been working on over the past week and a bit; directed by the talented Jyles Klassen (@jylesjk). We'll have it up ASAP. We're super excited to get this out to you wonderful people. So please share the love and share the video when it is unveiled. CHEERS.

Step Into the Light // Teaser from Jyles Klassen on Vimeo.

A sneak peek at the video for "Step Into the Light" by Manny Goossen.

Manny is currently competing in the CBC Searchlight Competition. Do him a favour and follow the link below to vote for him!
Also, follow Manny on social media or check back here for the full-length video later this week!

CBC Searchlight Vote: http://music.cbc.ca/#!/artists/Manny-Goossen
Instagram: https://instagram.com/mannygoossen

#VOTEMANNY #WEAREALLMANNY #SEARCHLIGHT

Step Into the Light // CBC's SEARCHLIGHT 2015

HELLO! Long time no blog... I've been busy in my living room "home studio", grouping gorgeous, grainy synths together in order to enter a song into this year's CBC Searchlight Competition. "Step Into the Light" came into fruition as an extension of sorts to an original piano tune I wrote. It became a canon styled cycle and I couldn't resist polishing it off as its own track. The song "explores life's meaning in all that is positive, spiritual, and existential."

"What the H is this contest?!" you might ask. It is "The Hunt for Canada's Best New Artist". The CBC puts it on every year and receives thousands of original song submissions from aspiring artists across our great nation. It is a round by round contest, so I must rely on votes from YOU (family, friends, and the public) if I am to survive these knockout rounds!

"So how do I vote?!" You will find "Step Into the Light" by Manny Goossen in the Winnipeg region on CBCMUSIC.CA/SEARCHLIGHT!

OR THIS LINK

will lead you straight to my song, where you can listen and vote!

Also, a mobile friendly/quick vote link is:

 http://music.cbc.ca/cbcsearchlight/?id=292147

"WHY SO MANY LINKS, CBC?!"

And the first round has STARTED. You can vote for up to 10 artists per region PER DAY, starting today March 30th till April 13th. That means a vote a day for a total of 15 votes per person, and maybe you can vote on more than one device... Try IT! I think I've made myself clear :)

So I'd lovingly appreciate your support if you'd be so kind! THANK YOU!

If you haven't heard the song yet, beneath holds the light.
Or turn on your sound and it just might be playing already ;)

Cheers and ciao for now!

Hard link: https://soundcloud.com/mannygoossen/step-into-the-light

In Our Bedroom After the War

It's that time of year again. Love is in the (face buckling) air, adoration is shared, people's hearts are exposed, and an appreciation for relationship is shown. So I want to share my love with you all! And I'll do so through a special cover. Ever since 2008, I've played "In Our Bedroom After the War" by the Canadian indie pop group Stars in my family's living room, on our out of tune, upright piano. It is a tune that grasps my love for piano driven, soothing anthemic songs; packed plentifully with crescendos and legato from strings and brass (a narrow category, I know). It took me seven years to get around to covering it, but I feel the wait was well worth it. Stars quickly began to influence and shape my musical tastes after I first discovered them (around the time when In Our Bedroom After the War came out) so I hope that this cover would make them proud.

Here it is, "In Our Bedroom After the War"...

Let me know what you think! Cheers.

LINK: https://soundcloud.com/mannygoossen/inourbedroomafterthewar

p.s. they'll be in Winnipeg this coming Saturday (Feb. 21st) with Hey Rosetta! at the Burt.
Two amazing bands worth checking out.

ciao for now

My Top Albums of 2014

This year was a fantastic year for music. I had many travels and a lot of time in those travels to enjoy a handful of solid albums. I had a blast at Lollapalooza in Chicago (seeing many of the groups/artists below) and also loved listening to the albums below on my long train rides in Europe this past fall—where music was essential for reflection, relaxation and time consumption.
However, let's get right to my TOP ALBUMS OF THE YEAR...

OH BABY, it's a TOP 15 this year! So HERE WE GO:

15. Future of Forestry // The Piano & Strings Sessions

Just like the title says, a refreshing and soothing take on some of our favourites.

14. Switchfoot // Fading West

They've been together for a long time and they keep making great music... and they're amazing people, you can't go wrong.

13. Phantogram // Voices

You feel like an invincible, electro-energized badass listening to this album.

12. alt-J // This Is All Yours

You don't know what they're singing half the time, but their instrumentation and intonation trumps the lyrics anyway.




11. Ben Howard // I Forget Where We Were

I'll never forget where I was when I listened to this album over and over:
Tuscany, Italy, working in a family's vineyard looking over rolling hills... sorry I brought that up.




10. Ásgeir // In the Silence

Icelanders are music writing GURUS. Enough said.
An original and acoustic version of one of the best songs on the album.




9. Kye Kye // Fantasize

A family band consisting of 3 Estonian-born siblings based in Portland,
and the frontwoman's name is Olga!
Indietronica at its finest. What else do you want?




8. Hey Rosetta! // Second Sight

A thoroughly engaging, endearing, and musically jam-packed album. One where you headbang very noticeably while singing along loudly in the car... solo.

7. Sam Roberts Band // Lo-Fantasy (Deluxe Version)

Again, Sam Roberts Band is as tight as a band can be. Riffs and groove galore.

6. Jars of Clay // 20

A silky smooth 20th anniversary re-recording of fan voted favourites from their two decades as a phenomenal band. Includes two great new songs as well.

5. Sleeping at Last // Atlas: Year One

One of those albums you listen to while admiringly looking down onto the world from your window seat, high in the sky.

4. Vance Joy // Dream Your Life Away

Vance will melt your heart. I witnessed this, standing beside several love-struck/fainting women during his Lollapalooza set this summer.

3. Bahamas // Bahamas Is Afie

This guy can shred a guitar, yet he does so in the most effortless, nonchalant manner. This album will make your head swim with pleasing goodness.

2. James Vincent McMorrow // Post Tropical

Talk about mind-blowing falsettos, which even blow the minds of the preceding songs' falsettos.
This album is epic beyond measure.

...

AND MY FAVOURITE ALBUM OF 2014 IS...

+

1. Manchester Orchestra // COPE & HOPE

The album that became two. COPE is a genuine rock album. Manchester Orchestra felt that they needed to buck the electronic trend so many of their peers were following. A hard-hitting, electric guitar smashing album of piercing vocal melodies and blasting distortion was brought to life as a result. Then came HOPE. HOPE was the kicker for me as it was surprisingly released five months later. It uncovered the complementing, heartfelt side of the same lyrics and skeletal compositions of COPE. Overall, Manchester Orchestra intricately exposed the beautiful acoustic faces of their core songs from COPE. Enjoy "Girl Harbor" and "Top Notch," two songs that clearly illustrate the difference between Manchester Orchestra's yin-yang albums:




~
Local Albums

Saint Kris // 329

It is an honour to have contributed to Saint's album with "Flow". It is also NOW UP ON SoundCloud as a FREE DOWNLOAD. Enjoy!

&
The Bros. Landreth // Let It Lie

Honourable Mentions of 2014

Coldplay // Ghost Stories

Stars // No One Is Lost

Broken Bells // After the Disco

Wild Cat! Wild Cat! // No Moon At All

John Butler Trio // Flesh & Blood

The Ones That Got Away (2013)

Half Moon Run // Dark Eyes

London Grammar // If You Wait (Deluxe Version)

Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. // The Speed of Things

THANKS FOR LISTENING WITH ME. 
HAPPY NEW YEAR! 
WISHING YOU WELL THROUGHOUT 2015.
CHEERS!

Maintenance and Memories // Revisiting Holsby

Okay, back to regularly scheduled posting... I hope to continue and finish my 'European Travels' series over the Christmas holiday. I've been back in Winnipeg now for over a month, but I still have plenty to share about the Fall adventures I had all those kilometres away.

I left Hamburg early Monday morning in mid October. Stepping onto the train, it chugged North to Stockholm via Copenhagen. One of the best things about this route is that the train literally rolls to the end of the track straight into a ferry; crossing a section of the Baltic Sea (a nice hour break to get some fresh salty air). My next stop was not Stockholm however... I made a connection in Nässjö and beelined SE toward Vetlanda. John Poysti, the director of Holsby Bible School, was waiting as I stepped off into the chilly Swedish air. I was indeed going back to visit the school I went to in the Spring of '08. In Berlin, I emailed John to check and see if they needed any help over the course of the next couple months. It just so happened that they were happy to have me come for a week and work with their maintenance team. I gladly accepted, and there I was, ready for a week of maintenance and memories.

The school's student body was small, about fifty in number this school year. A welcoming and kind group, in which I was delighted to meet and get to know over the week. For the work day, it was a blast with the three German full timers—Tobi, Philipp, Jan—and myself on maintenance. Below, I'll give you an overview with some notes of what my busy week looked like, and the sort of jobs I was handed. I also had the evenings off to enjoy staff and student-life alike and get a taste of this year's experience there.

Day 1

Maintenance work
My first day on the job we gathered metal scraps from the dump shed and took a trailer full to the dump in Vetlanda. I went with Philipp and we had a good time tossing the different shapes and sizes of junk from the trailer into the designated stall. After this we went to a hardware store to look for a certain tool bit. With no luck on the tool bit, we headed home. The way home proved to be difficult... In a construction bottleneck, our van broke down on the one-lane reduced highway. Having to push it to the side, we held up traffic causing an inevitable jam. Thankfully, the long line may have blindly been accepting due to the construction zone cover! We ended up pushing the van and trailer 200m to the next available emergency shoulder area. Though, two semi trucks squeezed by first in the tiny space between us and the median. There were literally only a few millimetres of separation. Tobi came about 30 minutes later and towed us with a rubber rope back to Holsby. It was quite the icebreaker on my first work day!

Evening
There was a staff surprise birthday party. All of the staff and all fifteen or so of their toddlers shockingly waited quietly to surprise the birthday girl! She amazingly didn't know of nor see the celebration coming either (it's hard to keep something quiet on such a small campus). We ate plenty of cake and watched the kids run around the house, chasing one another in a gleeful parading fashion. The husband even had this game of how well we knew his wife—shockingly I guessed 3 out of the 10 questions... Not too shabby for meeting them the previous day.

Day 2 

Maintenance work
That morning after breakfast I gave my testimony to the German maintenance guys. It was fascinating to be able to speak to a few Germans and have them understand in their second language. Having them relate to and able to discuss everything I was talking about in regards to my life's journey and faith was very encouraging as well.

The work day began afterward, and Jan and I were tasked with the important job of fixing the boy's dorm's old lounge couch. Its back rest was completely separated (probably from a few too many flying male bodies). This couch was a wooden tank. It had four layers of upholstery, so we sawed through it all and drilled 3 large bolts into each side, stapling the upholstery back when we finished. The rescue mission for this mammoth of a couch took way longer than we thought. Going back and forth from the workshop—trying to find the right equipment for the job—it ended up taking us the morning and most of the afternoon to complete the fix! It was well worth it though as it felt sturdier than ever.

Evening
I took the evening off to recuperate from my travelling time and the previous week in Berlin. I also blogged!

Day 3 

Maintenance work
Jan and I took the school's recycling to the bins in the town of Holsbybrunn down the street. Now, Jan is a funny character. He's not your typical straight-edged German, but rather one of those guys who could say anything, get away with it, and it would still be hilarious. I was basically his sidekick for the rest of the week as we tackled various jobs around the campus.
That afternoon I was up in one of the staff's attic distributing and spreading its sod insulation that was removed because of renovations. It was super dusty, dark and cramped up there. To get up, I had to climb a ladder and contort my body to fit through this small square entrance on the side of the house. Simultaneously the staff and students had their soccer intramurals, and the school's soccer pitch is right beside the attic I was working in... talk about torture. I wanted to play so badly, but I had a dusty job to do!

Evening
I took in the evening lecture from John Poysti, the director, that evening. He talked about discerning scripture and the mistakes people can make while trying to interpret and apply the word of God.

Day 4 

Maintenance work
Friday morning was a work morning for the whole student body. A handful of students and I took down over 15 tents that were hang dried from their camping trip the previous weekend. They needed to be matched with the corresponding rods, pegs, and bags as well to be packed up. So that was interesting trying to match up everything by looking at a drawing or picture of the tent. We also hung up 40 sleeping bags on hooks screwed into the ceiling, organizing their "outdoor trip" room.
After lunch, it was my final afternoon of volunteered work and I spent it cleaning up the woodcutting yard and cutting an old metal roof rack. Actually, Jan used the steel saw and I watched in awe as the orange sparks flew while the metal was sliced.

Evening
Friday night! A group of us (six Germans and I) drove to Vetlanda's public pool. We swam to our heart's content and sauna'd like a proud Scandinavian would. Later, back on campus, we had a staff movie night and watched the classic "Bulletproof Monk" with Sean William Scott.

Day 5

Saturday was a nice time to relax, walk/bike around the area, and enjoy the crisp Swedish Fall air. I also visited and caught up with the Poysti's over lunch, who were there at the school when I attended seven years ago. The newest addition to the campus was its Soccer-Golf course with strategically placed holes in the ground that soccer balls rolled and bounced into. It stretched from the soccer pitch around through the back forest and wrapped around, finishing on the other side of the school. The many trees provided the bend-it-like-Beckham obstacles, and if it wasn't for the deceiving slope of the 9th hole I would've beat the course record!

Saturday night was games night up in the Bik (beek), the name for the lounging loft above the chapel.  Intense UNO games and Foosball matches were had, as well as a Settlers of Catan game, where I was forced to display my deceptive, winning strategy in victory over a few of the students.

Day 6

My final day had come on Sunday, and I finally got the chance to play soccer with everybody! Philipp organized a Sunday afternoon scrimmage, full with an international flavour. The countries represented were Sweden, Canada, USA, Denmark, England, Germany, and Austria. Us actual soccer players had cleats and it just so happened that most of us were on the same team... Therefore, with us up 5-0, someone at half-time made the bold proposal for everyone to go barefoot! With the field pretty ripped up, wet, and muddy, the second half was quite the spectacle. I had two glorious chances to score but when I planted my left foot I went head-over-heels both times, smacking my butt on the grass. The other team ended up coming back and radically winning 10-9!

That evening we had a prayer and worship night in the chapel. The students organized it and grouped off sections with signs of countries in need of prayer. It was a sobering time, but it also was a humbling reminder of how blessed I am for living in the peace of Canada.

Monday morning I was driven to the train-station and just like that, my time there was over as quick as it began. It was a great experience to come in and meet such a good group of people in only a week's span. If you're looking for a Bible School abroad or a year off/gap year from studies or whatever really, check out the sites for Holsby and Bodenseehof (the other bible school I went to), I highly recommend the experience (no matter what age you are).

Holsby Website

Bodenseehof Website

Here are a few pics from Sweden:

Fixing the wooden tank of a couch

Swedish Forest

Brunnsgården

In the town of Holsbybrunn

Up in the attic space with the sod

One of the best chocolate bars in the world

Ciao for now!

#300

Update! It is hard to believe, but this exact post will be my 300th for this blog overall. I'm very appreciative of those who have taken the time to read, comment, and give feedback on my stories, opinions, videos, music, and personal experiences over the past 5 years. My postings have obviously slowed down, however I still love to occasionally write and express certain thoughts—which are so often unspoken and unshared with those around me in real time. So thank you, whether you check-in once in a while or have been here since the beginning, my peers, friends, and family!

Much love.

p.s. MERRY CHRISTMAS! I'm a little late, but I'm recording a rendition of "O Come O Come Emmanuel" that I performed with a couple friends at our Church for its Christmas Eve services. Hopefully I can share that with you ASAP. 

And stay tuned for my 'Top Albums of the Year' post coming SOOOOON! It's been a fantastic year of music.

Christmas Cheer and a Joyous New Year to you!

Friends in Deutschland Tour Pt. 4 // Hamburg

Standing near Alexanderplatz in Berlin, I hopped onto a MeinFernbus coach and we rolled forth to the autobahn, destination: Hamburg. My friend Robert was kind enough to message me and tell me that I had a place to stay if I came through Hamburg. I happily accepted his offer and was excited to see him and his fine city. Hamburg, a port, is built with flood prevention in mind and is anchored on the North Sea inlet of the River Elbe. This makes for beautifully, tall architecture and high walkways that connect buildings and streets alike.

Our first night we went out to the burger joint Jim Block, accomplishing my objective of having a hamburger in Hamburg. It lived up to the name and I obviously enjoyed it thoroughly. I admired the dark, sleek harbour's waters, which contorted the reflection of the city lights as we walked to the metro. The Rathaus (city hall) loomed over the open square as we walked alone, free to roam.

The next day we spent strolling down the riverside, checking out the sights on the water. From Hamburg's new opera house, with its fascinating curvature and bright reflective windows, to the marina with old refurbished ships and new muscle-engined race boats. A group of people released about 100 balloons, standing on the docks by an aesthetically pleasing parallelogram, glass building with stairs covering the one side to the top. After another breath-taking view from the top of the parallelogram building, the ferry taxi came by and we took a ride down the waterway.

On Sunday we went to Robert's church where a lot of international students attend (meaning English speaking!). Since it was my first time at their church I got a voucher for a free Ritter Sport after the service. Now that's a great way to keep your visitors close. I redeemed the chocolate bar during their community lunch after the service, and that's where I also met Robert's international student friends. We ate and then went to check out one of the biggest parks in Hamburg afterward. From there a handful of us went back to the water and made our way to its underground tunnel entrance; an old cylindrical stone structure. Opened to vehicles on the weekend, it's fairly narrow and cuts under the water to the southern side of the city. On the other side, we witnessed the picturesque shoreline in the dusk of our evening. A perfect ending to my weekend in Hamburg!

Here are some photos of my time there:

Robert was my personal photographer

The loud muscle race boats

The small marina

Yay for flood prevention

The parallelogram glass building

From the stairs, slanted angle

Stairs straight on!

A look over the harbour

Through the trees

Balloons!

Rise!

See the balloons?

Again, my personal photographer: Robert

The underground, underwater tunnel

The Opera House 

Rob and I

A fancy ferry 

A #mannytravelpose in front of the Rathaus

Photography fun!

Double vision #mannytravelpose

Next up: Handy Manny, the Swedish maintenance volunteer!

Ciao for now.

Friends in Deutschland Tour Pt. 3 // Berlin

Okay... It's been some time since I last posted was in a small room of a small home in rural Sweden back then. Now I'm in a large home in rural Tuscany, Italy. Of course, a bunch of travel has happened in between this three week gap, and I'll get to that sooner or later. However, I'm going to account back to before Sweden, to before I even knew I was going to Sweden. I made those plans while sitting cross-legged in a small bare room in a neighbourhood of... Berlin.


I went to Berlin to finally see the popular city and stay with my friends Caleb and Alexis [C&A] (Caleb is an amazing artist and you can view his collection on his website!). The last time I was in Europe I had only been connecting trains at the Berlin station. So this time I would see the city and the many things it had to offer. My first night there we took it easy and checked out C&A's neighbourhood. They live a stone's throw away from a "borrow shop", the only one of its kind in the city. You literally borrow anything in the store and return the item when you're done with it. Genius. We borrowed an air-mattress and a pump, thus giving me a bed for the week. Getting on the topic of TV shows with the owners of the shop, HBO's 'True Detective' came up and that gave us an idea for our night: Television Binge. Caleb and I started and finished the whole season that one night. All the way through the 8 episodes we kept pushing each other to stay awake and fight our sleepy, bedtime notions. Interestingly enough, it is fitting that we watched this show at the time we did, because you'll soon see why as you read on...

Caleb and I cycled everywhere the five days I was there, but we only covered a mere fraction of Berlin. The city layout and its regions are fragmented like a 100pc jigsaw puzzle. I've never seen as much graffiti in my life as well; commissioned work and that of talented amateurs, Berlin has it all.

We cycled to the Memorial for the Murdered European Jews of the Holocaust and walked through the thousands of erected concrete slabs, divided into many intersecting rows. Underground is a museum that holds the names of all known Jewish Holocaust victims. We read many accounts of these victims and the grim atrocities they were forced to witness, suffer and die from. Truly soul-wrenching.

Passing under and by the Brandenburg Gate, we followed the trace of where the Berlin Wall stood. On the streets, the tracing is a paired line of small metal, circular plates that represent the memory of the city's former separation. Winding our way on the bicycle paths, dodging blind drivers, we arrived at the East Side Gallery. A kilometre stretch of the Berlin Wall that still stands today. Painted with murals of commissioned art on one side and amateur's graffiti tags on the other. Here we took our Lidl €5 lunch and ate by the river, then perused the whole section of the Wall in the spitting rain.

Berlin's nightlife is apparently one of the best in the world. I didn't dare go to the Berghain for example, but you find hundreds of small pubs, restaurants, and cafés within the city blocks no matter where you are. C&A and I attended a Couchsurfing event of table tennis in a bar one night. Met a girl from California, two guys from France and Germany, and another girl from Eastern Europe (I forget the exact country she said she was from). After playing "Chinese" table tennis as they called it, (or "Around the World" as I'd always called it... I mean, wouldn't "Chinese" table tennis be a more professional version of the sport?) we again took to our bicycles and wandered the neighbourhood.

Our True Detective Scare

My final night in Berlin was a creepy one. We decided to check out an abandoned radio station located on the outskirts: Funkhaus Grünau. Taking our bikes aboard the S-Bahn, we made the trek out and arrived at the haunted looking brick building. As dusk turned to dark, we entered the back of the property and snuck in through a second floor window. Creepy. The pitch-blackness seemed to swallow us whole as we stepped deeper into the hollow hold. What was startling was the fact that another man, alone, was lurking about in there with us. I passed by a doorway and through my peripherals saw his silhouetted outline... and did a double-take with a nervous chuckle. He thankfully turned out not to be a mass-murderer...

In the most eerie room we found beer bottle candles, brimming over with wax all strewn about, a mattress (in which we did not want to know the owner), and graffiti with wooden crafts, which freaked us out the most. Cue "True Detective" once more. The stick crafts were of those in the show and the spray painted antlered creature fit the uneasy atmosphere all the same. We ventured into the basement and explored every nook and cranny till Caleb had his fill.

The Funkhaus Grünau gave me the sense of Berlin's mysterious sense of art and its mix of painful history in the same place. As eerie as it was, it was also quite fascinating, bold, and creative. The boiler room in the basement featured an escape hatch, with a pitch-fork and a large star-shaped spool at the foot of it. Another room had a group of individual head-shots of random faces that were defaced or displaying some sort of emotional expression. It was quite the experience.

The next day I hopped on the bus and made my way North West toward Hamburg. But I'll leave that beautiful city for my next post.

Here are some more Berlin photos!

The Reichstag

The Holocaust Memorial for the Murdered Jews of Europe

Berlin Wall reminder poles 

East Side Gallery on the river side

One of the most famous murals of communist leaders Leonid Brezhnev and Erich Honecker

Berlin Graffiti

ps I did enjoy a sweet and tasty Berliner doughnut in Berlin.