January Wish List

There’s some cracking clothes on the high street right now and if this weather isn't a great excuse to stock up on those winter wardrobe staples then I don't know what is. Here’s some of my favourite pieces available right now, with plenty of jumpers and boots to help you through the cold snap.

1.Topshop £20 2.Topshop £60 3.Topshop £28 4. New Look £14.99 5.H&M £12.99

6. New Look £19.99 7.River Island £25

 

Artists of the moment

A new year brings fresh musical talent, and 2013 already looks set to be a magical 12 months of new music. Here’s two artists who are tickling my musical senses right now and who I predict big things from this year.

 BASTILLE   

Having blogged about this awesome foursome during last summer’s festival season I’ve been an avid Bastille fan ever since. Three singles and several EP’s down it’s now time to focus on their long awaited debut album Bad Blood, set for release on March 4^th. These boys infuse electro pop beats with pitch perfect vocals and melodic lyrics; they’re everything I’ve ever wanted from a boy band!

Current single Pompeii is all about synth-pop, the latest genre to enter the musical radar. Pop music with a hidden level of character and depth…pretty clever! A beautiful song and one which showcase lead singer Dan’s distinctive, memorable and truly remarkable voice.

Supporting Two Door Cinema Club on their current UK tour, Bastille are set to spread their wings later this year with their own album tour across the country. With dates selling out fast don’t miss out on witnessing the raw talent of Bastille before they hit superstardom. Take a listen to their latest single Pompeii here.

TOM O'DELL

Following in the footsteps of Florence & the Machine, Adele  and Emeli Sande comes Tom O’Dell, the latest BRIT school offering and this year’s winner of the prestigious BRITs Critics Choice Award. With such an impressive gong under his belt, the future already seems extremely bright for this young star.

Latest single Another Love is a vulnerable, stripped back account of lost romance and learning to love again. O’Dell puts so much raw emotion into his singing that you can’t help but be drawn in by the sheer pain he evokes through his music. 

Taking influence from the likes of Bob Dylan and Elton John, Tom leapt on the song writing bandwagon at the mere age of 13. Now at 22, he’s more than ready to live up the hype and showcase his abilities as an artist. His debut album Long Way Down is set for release on 15^th April.  Raw, fresh talent…take note!

With so many other artists impressing me right now it was difficult to pick my top two. Future blog posts over the forthcoming weeks will be sure to introduce even more talent to your music collection. Watch this space.

                                                                      

 

Winter favourites

With temperatures well into the minuses and dark dreary days making you feel less than enthusiastic about almost everything on your to do list, it’s important that we all take some time out to enjoy the finer things in life. These so called ‘finer things’ may just include a good book on your kindle, or a new lipstick to give you that wow factor over the festive period, but hey it’s the little things that make the biggest difference after all.  So without further ado here’s what’s keeping me sane during the stresses of winter; and you’ll be pleased to know its not all entirely music related like most things on my blog as I am also a lover of all things fashion and beauty!

 JUMPERS

Nothing screams winter like a good old cable knit. This season I’ve unintentionally become slightly obsessed with them and have counted no less than 15 jumpers in my wardrobe in all shades and styles. Perfect with a pair of skinny jeans and biker boots and finished with that statement leather jacket. An effortless outfit that remains stylish and comfortable. Perfect!

READ, READ, READ

Since jumping on the Kindle bandwagon several months ago I have become a complete book worm. A mere 85p to download an Amazon bestseller which can be bought in paper back form for a tenner only to be read once and remain on a shelf collecting dust for years to come. As the Kindle v Book battle rages on, I know whose side I’m on. 

For me there’s nothing better than settling down with a cuppa and a book after a long day at work, perhaps I’m old before my time, but to me it really is the best form of relaxation.  As romantic chick flicks go I’m not the biggest of fans, but my favourite Kindle read of the moment and one that I can not recommend enough is You Had Me at Hello by Mhairi McFarlane. A cliché, but I literally couldn’t put it down. Tales of lost love and friendship during University, I was moved to tears and believe me I never cry! Well worth an e-reader download or a trip to the bookshop.

Other recommended books include:

The Love of My Life by Louise Douglas  

Monday to Friday Man by Alice Peterson 

Me Before You by Jojo Moyes

REHYRDRATION

For years I’ve struggled to find the perfect moisturiser, but finally after a long battle I’ve found it! The secret to my soft skin comes in the form of No 7 Essential Moisture Day Cream (Boots, £10.50) My very oily skin was prone to blemishes and spot breakouts and although I will never be completely rid of the odd spot, my skin remains much more supple and balanced and the greasy nose and chin have been banished! Well worth the investment.

HAIR LIFT

Nothing screams winter better than kinky, frazzled hair drenched by the daily down pour and ruined by the 70mph winds on your treacherous walk to work.  There’s no solution to these winter hair woes but something that’s helping me to battle the elements is Aussie Colour Mate Limited Edition Shampoo and Conditioner.  Having become too friendly with the home hair dye kit over the past two years my hair had been left screaming for some attention. Not only does it protect coloured hair from chemical damage, it also leaves it looking vibrant and super shiny. The wind and rain may well succeed in destroying my hair on an almost daily basis but at least I can sleep easy at night knowing that when I set out on my morning travels it looked shiny and luscious!

 

Life after university

Having left Southampton several months ago and rather painfully parting with my student ways, some of which I must admit I was more pleased to see the back of than others, (FYI damp, mouldy houses and grumpy landlords does not constitute as ‘living the dream’) I returned to the city last week to finally graduate!

After the initial panic of the robes and cap, and not forgetting the dreaded ‘This is Your Life’ walk in high heels, the day was a lovely celebration of the best three years of my life and a reminder that as one door closes another one, perhaps after a long wait, will eventually open.

Six months after finishing university I’m slowly starting to shift the post graduate depression. Returning home after three independent years wasn’t something I ever envisaged, but unfortunately I quickly learnt that your dream job doesn’t just land in your lap, unless you are extremely lucky of course. My naivety allowed me to assume that as soon as I graduated I’d be donning my sharp pencil skirt and crisp jacket and heading off to my £25,000 a year job in central London. I had a degree, what more could an employer ever want? How wrong I was as I sit here on a much needed day off from my full time, minimum wage job making endless cups of coffee and serving copious amounts of cake to grumpy Costa lovers. Service with a smile.

 

My third year of university instilled some much needed drive and determination, allowing me to see that all work and no play really does pay off; something which I keep reminding myself as I sit here tweaking my CV for the 100^th time and sending off yet another application form. The only thing that helps me to stay positive about the lack of employment offers I’m receiving is the realisation that I’m not alone. Many graduates are the in the exact same shoes as me and living in hope is the only way to stop myself from hibernating until I finally receive some much needed happiness in my email inbox.

The big bad world really is as scary as I always imagined it would be. Can I go back to living the student dream in my moudly house now please?

Oh Glastonbury

 

Several weeks ago I became one of the lucky few to secure myself a ticket to next summers Glastonbury Festival. With tickets selling out in record time, 1 hour and 40 minutes to be precise, I’ve been left wondering what it is that makes this West Country festival so damn popular? Will the hype of Glastonbury ever die down? And will Mr Eavis ever get the chance to retire? Here comes a musical rant.

A sucker for a soggy weekend in a Somerset field drinking lukewarm cider and wading through knee high mud, my love for music festivals was established back in 2009 with my first and by no means last visit to Glastonbury Festival.  Back then tickets didn’t sell out in a matter of hours. There was no staring at a computer screen all morning waiting for the site to load and no 85 frantic redials on your mobile only to hear an engaged tone on the ticket hotline. I simply turned on my computer several weeks after they went on sale and ordered myself a ticket.  No stress, no fuss and no “sorry tickets for Glastonbury Festival are now sold out.”

Unfortunately things went down hill from there.  After 2009 if you weren’t logged onto your computer at 9am on the day sales began, it was almost certain that you wouldn’t get a ticket. And to be quite honest, if you were logged onto the site at 9am chances are you still wouldn’t get a ticket.

 

In the late 1970’s Glastonbury Festival was a free event and an opportunity for travellers from across the world to come together to provide peace and freedom and enjoy local music. Yet today I worry that the festival is starting to lose the friendly, happy go lucky vibes that it has always offered. In the past three years Glastonbury has become much more of a status thing, with people no longer going for the friendly atmosphere or to enjoy the hundreds of events that are held across the site each day.  A ticket automatically enters you into the so called ‘cool gang’. A gang where the following rules apply: you must consume as much alcohol as possible during the weekend, you must act like an idiot and you must pretend to like all of the same uber cool indie bands as your friends.

My views may sound controversial, but with every passing festival year they become even more apparent. Don’t get me wrong, Glastonbury will always be the world’s greatest music festival, but my main concern is that many of today’s attendees aren’t there just to enjoy the music. Glastonbury=the 21^st century cool persons festival.

Mumford & Sons: Babel

 

 

Two years after the release of their debut album Sigh No More, Mumford & Sons return with their second studio album, Babel.  Having mastered the unique ability to capture raw, honest emotion and turn it into something beautiful, Mumford & Sons may well have created a follow up album which will rival the undeniable success of their first.

This four piece band are the epitome of modern day English folk music. Vigorous foot stomping and barn dancing mixed with banjos and accordions, the boys definitely mean business. Although some may argue that Babel isn’t a massive diversion from the sound of their debut; with the incredible success of the double platinum selling, Grammy nominated Sigh No More, surely the band would be naive to wander too far away from what they know and more importantly what makes them so successful.

Holland Road and Ghost that We Knew offer ideas of personal contemplation and self belief. Sad, pensive tracks that we’ve all grown to expect and love from Mumford & Sons, “Well I rose and I rose and I paid less time, to your callus mind, and I wished you well as you cut me down.”

Current favourite Lover of the Light (close contenders include Hopeless Wanderer, Below my Feet and Babel) is perfect for a live audience and one which will be a definite crowd pleaser during next years festival run. (Glastonbury 2013 headliners, surely?)

Broken Crown is a future hit with a huge chorus, dramatic horns and a sense of hysteria, “Ill crawl on my belly till the sun goes down.” The Little Lion Man of the new album, hair raising, chaotic and utterly perfect. 

Babel is built for live performances; headline slots at summer festivals and massive arena tours. Big and bold, the sheer power of Marcus’s voice is one of pure rustic perfection.

As a Mumford & Sons super fan I admit, rather red faced,  that I have been counting down the months, weeks and even days to the release of their new album, and it’s fair to say that it certainly hasn’t disappointed.  A positive continuation of their first album? Perhaps. But it’s a continuation that, after a two year wait, many true Mumford fans will be grateful to hear.
 

Tickets for their UK arena tour this December are on sale now. Get yours here!

The Vaccines: Come of Age

If I could write an album review with just one single word then I would. Amazing, brilliant, wonderful, fantastic, great….any of these words will do the trick, as each one effectively sums up my feelings towards Come of Age the new album from my favourite band of 2012 (and 2011), The Vaccines.

Many music fanatics have questioned The Vaccines decision to release an album so quickly after their debut (What Did You Expect from the Vaccines?) in early 2011, but what Come of Age successfully does is show the boy’s progression as artists. If there’s one band that deserves the title of hardest working musicians of the last year it’s The Vaccines with an endless touring and recording schedule, it’s pretty impressive that they managed to piece together an album in such little time. However they certainly did a remarkable job as Come of Age successfully showcases their transition from middle of the road indie band to full on rock stars. Having only been a band for two years, many of their new songs reveal their new found maturity as a group with deeper lyrics and razor sharp rifts, a statement of development and self-confidence.

Come of Age offers classic sixties vibes and plenty of radio friendly hits. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t enjoy all 11 songs, (14 if you purchased the deluxe edition) but as a super Vaccines fan this is to be expected.  Personal favourites include I Always Knew, Change of Heart and Misbehaviour (I could go on).  Singles No Hope and Teenage Icon both see lead singer Justin Young admit his discomfort and self doubt as the front man of 2012’s biggest band: “I’m no teenage icon…I’m nobodies hero,” “I don’t really care about anybody else, when I haven’t got my whole life figured out,”  a theme which continues to rear its head throughout the album.

 

Ghost Town and Aftershave Ocean are the Wetsuit and Norgaard of Come of Age. Simple tracks with unexplainable meanings, absurd lyrics and an extremely catchy chorus: “I get water up my nose, I have to dry my clothes in your aftershave ocean,”  “Well you think your town is pretty boring, come and spend a day with me,” See what I mean?

Currently number one in the mid week charts and fighting off stiff competition from the northern Irish trio, Two Door Cinema Club with Beacon here’s hoping that the boys sustain this album position on Sunday, I for one am pretty certain that they will.

As a super fan of  Justin, Pete, Arnie and Freddie this review may seem extremely biased, but whatever you think you of The Vaccines I think it’s fair to say that Come of Age is an extremely brave progression from their debut album. Well done boys.

Tickets for their November tour are on sale now….snap yours up here!