Top 3 Songs of the week #4

Hi,

This week I've been loving...
Sex won't fill your heart by those who seek
Stay awake by London Grammar
Benjamin Twine by George Ezra

Sex won't fill your heart is a gorgeous indie-rock song by "Those who seek" which I reviewed HERE. The intro is amazing guitar work with twangy sounds over each other which has a great effect. When they get going the symbols crash all over the place and the guitar is full of stopping and starting with hard electric beats. There is a bit where there are spoken words behind the singing which has a great which has a great effect. This song makes you want to get up on stage and dance and sing with these guys! Its just great!!!

Stay awake starts with spooky acoustic guitar chords, the sound of the sliding fingers down the guitar sounds great. The piano chords follow the guitar which as a great sound. When you first hear the vocalist you immediately think WOW she has an mazing voice and as you listen on you realise just how good she is. There are electronic beats behind this which I don't normally like with this sort of song but here it works really well. Nothing really changes throughout the song but this just adds another spooky and dramatic level to the song. London Grammar are a really talented group!

Benjamin Twine is starts with George Ezra's distressed and croaky voice which you don't expect to be matched with his face but still he sounds great. This song is indie folk but feels very slightly reggae (you'll know what I mean if you listen to it). This is a simple song with a thin texture of only guitar, maraca shakes, finger snaps and a bass betas which I'm pretty sure is a double bass. This song is upbeat and makes you tap your head along to it! You should check out George Ezra's performance at the BBC introducing at Glastonbury HERE.

Those who seek

Hi,

So today's post will be about  band called Those who seek. These guys have one EP out called "Because really, we're just animals". You can have a listen to it on their bandcamp site HERE!

The band's EP has all ranges of genres including a punk-rock track "Look to the skies". I don't usually like this type of bass heavy confused drum beat music, but these guys are an exception. I really like their track "Run from me" which you really don't expect after hearing their first track. This a slower song with mellow opening verses showing the vocal talent and multi-genre writing ability of the band. It progresses into a captivating chorus and some amazing guitar work. The track "sex won't fill your heart" is full of crashing symbols that sound like waves breaking. This song is more indie-rock which is great, probably my favourite. Their last song "Veritas Occulta" is more rock again, still extremely heavy. This song has a fast tempo and building guitar chords with drums crashing all the way through. The song includes fast pace beats and a destructive bassline which are surprisingly catchy!

I love these guys and it would be great if you could check out their facebook page: HERE

iTunes single of the week review #2 & #3

Hi,

Sorry that I couldn't do the review last week, I just didn't have time! So I though today I would do a review of last weeks and this week's single! Last week it was Tonight by Wilkinson and today it was Riptide by Vance Joy.

Wilkinson (also known as Mark Wilkinson) is a drum & bass and dubstep producer from London. He remixes songs and produces records. He only has singles out.

Review:
This song is electro-pop, and let me warn you now I have never liked anything electro-pop! Every now and again a woman's voice is put on with effects like echo, fading and wobbly (technical term for you there!) which does add something. The spacey far out beats that sound like they are being heard far away which I relatively quite liked but this didn't last for long. The whole song is very samey and boring. It just sounds like computer game sound effects. At one point it breaks down into more R&B, faster beats, sometimes with some actual pitch changes!

Overall I really don't like this track, way way way too electronic and samey. Ill give it 2/10 for the spacey bit!

Vance Joy is an Australian singer/songwriter from Melbourne. He has one EP out called "God loves you when you're dancing" (I just love that title!!)

Review:
This song is an upbeat beachy sounding track. The first chords sound like you're sitting in a beach shack (in a good way). But his crackly, closed jaw, sometimes breathy vocals sound gorgeous and unexpected against everything else. I love that everything stops for a beat before the chorus. At the end the music stops and he is one beat behind singing "wrong", this is a gorgeous effect that makes you think. I love the chorus with only guitar chords and the tambourine, this whole track is so catchy and makes you tap your head and feet!

Overall, if you haven't already guessed I love this song!! I'll give it 9/10.

Sorry this is a bit late but hope you enjoyed!!

#BritishBloggerSelection: Favourite Clothes shop

Hi,

My first #BritishBloggerSelection post!! So the theme is your favourite clothes shop and mine is definitely Topshop! I love the clothes but I can hardly ever afford them. This will sound silly but I love the music they play there, I just think that its nice to have the right atmosphere and I love wandering round humming along looking at all the clothes. So for this theme I thought I'd do my Topshop wishlist!

My first lifestyle post, hope you enjoyed!

Top 3 songs of the week #3

Hi,

Right so.....

This week I've been loving...
Holes by passenger
White blank page by Mumford and sons.
Kiss the grass by The paper kites

Holes is a powerful lighter indie-rock song that really sticks in the head (which was great in my English lit exam...). This grabs onto some of my more poppy tastes but passenger is just amazing. I love the lyric "mortgage to pay and four kids to raise, keeping the wolf from the door, well the wolf's just a puppy and the door's double locked so why you gotta worry me for?". I love that the music stops for the well the last part of that line. There are some really meaningful bits I this song. I love that its mostly just an acoustic guitar and piano chords, but then when more singers join in for the last chorus then a trumpet is added which just works so well. This feels like everything's being brought together. God I love this track!

White blank page in one of my favourite Mumford songs. I love Marcus's distressed and deep growly voice which goes great with the piano chords that add another level of tension of menace to the track. The song is relatively gentle in the first verse, then in the chorus they really get going and start getting angry and loud and powerful, everything is accented. Staccato waltz beats played by the drums and banjo give more anger to this part. The violins in the instrumental between verses have a folky and traditional sound, these guys are genius!!

Kiss the grass is a slowly moving simple track that makes you feel tired and relaxed at first word. The music behind the vocals is simple, just guitar changing chords every 4 beats and an electric guitar following the vocals after a while with an added female voice harmonising to the initial sole male voice. Texture is added and taken out throughout the whole thing. But there are constantly the 4 beat guitar chords giving stability to the piece. I love the softness and tranquillity of the paper kites, great to fall asleep to!

My iTunes wish list

Hi,

So today I'll be showing you my iTunes wish list. This is my Christmas wish list which I started a couple of weeks ago after I had my last music shopping spree. Click on the album title to see it on the iTunes website and listen to previews.

And in no particular order......
All the little lights by passenger
Shangri La by Jake Bugg
Happiness by Hurts
Dead & born & grown by The Staves (wouldn't open on iTunes, sorry)
Snowglobe EP by Jesca Hoop
Aventine by Agnes Obel
Emily and the woods Ep by Emily and the woods
Wake the earth by Honey Trees
Eye to eye EP by Emily and the woods
In love by Peace
Pure Heroine by Lorde
Pathways EP by Billy Locket
Fire within by Birdy
Like I used to by Lucy Rose
Days are gone by HAIM
Invisible empire by KT Tunstall
If you leave by Daughter

Can't wait to buy this lot!!

#BritishBloggerSelection

Hi,

So the lovely Ellie from Little vintage camera has set up a project. This is a group for British bloggers to join. It doesn't matter what type of blog you have as long as you are British!

How this works: Each week on Saturday she'll send you a theme to blog about and from there you blog about whatever you want related to that theme! You don't have to participate in this every week, just participate when you feel ready! No one's forcing you to do it every week!

If you want to join in contact her (littlevintagecamera@gmail.com) with your blog URL, blog name and your first and last name and from there you are added into the group!

Hope you get involved!!

Top 3 songs of the week #2

Hi,

My second top 3 songs! Hope you enjoy!!

This week I've been loving:
My boy builds coffins by Florence + the machine
Get Low by dog is dead
Fri-end? by Kate Nash

My boy builds coffins is a beautiful and haunting song with light drum beats and harp strums that make it sound almost Caribbean. The lyrics make you think and aren't obvious what they mean at first listen, you can really tell they have been thought about. Florence has recorded her own voice harmonising and when you get past the first chorus they are added and it sounds really amazing. Florence + the machine was the first music that I properly got into and I just love her so much!

Get Low is a simply constructed track but with a great outcome. The lyrics are so good, I love the first line you hear: "a fear of the dark is a walk in the park when you're wasted". They are so believable, genuine and relatable. I love the waaaahhhh guitar chords after each chorus, they make it sound 90s and electronic, but not so that it is unlistenable. All this makes it a memorable and meaningful song! Dog is dead are probably my favourite band at the moment, love these guys so much!!!

Fri-end? is my favourite song from Kate Nash's album girl talk. Her bass heavy tracks are rocky and most are upbeat . This one is a real girl power rock song. She has a much lighter version of screamo which works really well. This is another album and artist that I am obsessing over at the moment. I love the lyrics, they are simple but effective. This grrrrrrl (Kate Nash fans will get that) is amazing and stands for some really great things. Bit of an idol at the moment!!

So there you go, hope you liked my post!

Today I've been listening to..... Dog is dead

Hi,

Just a short post for today. I've been loving Dog is dead's album "all our favourite stories". You can buy this album from iTunes HERE.

I've been listening to...

Background info:
Dog is dead is a five piece indie-pop band from Nottingham. The band consists of Robert Milton (vocals, guitar, bass guitar), Rob White (vocals, guitar), Joss Van Wilder (vocals, keyboards, guitar), Lawrence Cole (vocals, saxophone, bass guitar) and Daniel Harvey (drums). They have had 3 EPs (Dog is dead- 2009, Your childhood- 2011 and Confessions 2011) and one album out (all our favourite stories- 2012).

I absolutely love this band, I love their songs like "get low" and "two devils" which have powerful messages in their lyrics and their more upbeat songs like "glockenspiel song". My favourite of theirs is probably teenage daughter. I love Robert Milton's vocals and the saxophone in this track. I really think that every element comes together to make a memorable and really amazing piece of music. These guys are just ace!!

iTunes single of the week review #1

Hi,

Every Tuesday iTunes brings out a single of the week which you can download for free from iTunes. So, every Tuesday I'll have a listen and review it. This week it's "roots" by Orla Gartland.

Orla Gartland is an 18 year old singer, guitarist and ukulele player. She plays acoustic, folk, indie pop and indie folk. She only has one EP out called "Roots".

Review:
This song is indie pop with futuristic sounding electronic beats and acoustic guitar chords which work really well together. She has a really youthful sounding voice which is similar to birdy and Taylor Swift. Her lyrics are good and the music suits her voice well. The song starts off with only guitar and beats which sounds good and clean, but then as the song gets going the texture builds with backing singers and piano and more percussion which feels good. But I liked it best with the thin texture.

Overall I like this track but I don't love it. I think her voice is just a little too youthful and her songs a little too poppy for my tastes so I would give it 7/10.

Do you think this is a good feature? Let me know in the comments!

Pledge Music

Hi,

Today my post will be about the fantastic site, Pledgemusic. PledgeMusic is an online music platform, launched in August 2009, for artists to pre-sell, market, and distribute music projects including recordings, music videos, and concerts. Its a bit like Kickstarter, Indiegogo, RocketHub and Sellaband. The website is solely for raising money for artists. Fans "pledge" for something that hasn't come out yet, the pledgers will pay the artist and receive whatever they have pledged for at the end of the project. So for example I pledged for Katie Sutherland's new album "Canvas", I paid £32 and after about 6 months (once she had brought out the album) I received a t-shirt, signed bag and album. Throughout the pledge she posted free downloads of demos, pictures etc. that were only accessible to pledgers.

Example of pledge project/ what the site looks like

This is a really great way of finding and buying new music and supporting the artists that you love. So I urge you to get on the mailing list, it's completely free and all you have to do is sign up to get emails about trending artists and people you might like. I strongly recommend Jesca Hoop, Sadie and the hotheads and Canterbury. 

So that's it, hope you enjoyed my post and that you sign up to pledge music!!

Top 3 Songs of the week #1

Hi,

So today's post will be my 3 favourite and most listened to songs of the week, I'll do this every Saturday. Click on the song to have a listen.

This week I've been loving:
California daze by Peace
Half in love with Elizabeth by mystery jets
Buzzcut season by Lorde

California daze is from their EP delicious. I love the dulcet guitar riffs and the way the rest of the band harmonize behind the main vocalist with ad lib. I love the lyrics and the distressed sounding way that Harry Koisser sings them. Amzing song, amazing band!

Half in love with Elizabeth is from mystery jet's album Twenty One. I love this up beat track full of light drum beats and electronic keyboard sounds. The lyrics are amazing and I love the way they sing with their Twickenham accent. Love these guys!!

Buzzcut season was iTunes single of the week a few weeks ago so I got it from there. This is a powerful track, she manages to make a memorable song with a limited backing track. This girl is only 17 and still has an amazing range and a beautiful, haunting voice. Expect a review of her new album "Pure Heroine" pretty soon!

So that's it, hope you enjoyed my post! Do you know these artists, let me know your favourite of their songs in the comments!

Review of Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic zeroes

Hi

So, my first ever blog post! It will be a review of Edward Sharpe & the magnetic zeros' self titled album. You can buy the album from iTunes for £7.99 HERE

Background info:
ES&TMZ are mainly an indie folk band although they have gospel chorus harmonies and raw exuberant pop similar to the beatles. They formed in 2007 and since then they have had 3 albums: "Up from below" brought out in 2009, "Here" which came out in 2012 and debuted at number one in the independent music charts. And finally their self titled album which was brought out in July 2013. They use a huge range of instruments including trumpets, accordians and a tenor uklele in their music as the band has 12 members (although only 2 women!). These guys were highly promoted by Mumford and sons (who I love!!) so I thought I'd have a listen.

Review:
Their most popular song "Better days" was slightly jazzy and bluesy with gospel feeling parts. I thought it was a bit too bibley (yes, that is now a word!) and I didn't like the voice of the singer. I found a lot of the songs like "let's get high" breezey and easy listening. The song "in the lion" was definitely my favourite, it reminded me a lot of HAIM, followed by "when you're young" which sounded like mystery jets. The trumpets were a really great edition to this song even though I normally really don't like brass. The songs "life is hard" and "two" were my least favourite because they sounded as if they had come straight from a musical. There are so many different types of music in this album that I'm not sure I'd spend £8 on it (being the broke teenager that I am), there were some songs that I loved and some that I really didn't like. There was even a country/folk sounding one, which I really didn't expect.

Overall I'd give this album 5/10.

So that's it, hope you enjoyed it! Let me know what you think of ES&TMZ in the comments!