The Great Florence and the Machine

I could cry!  This song is amazing!  Probably the best work she has done so far.  This song is from the new Great Gatsby movie.

TNT and Dynomite

I can’t get this song out of my head! It’s to addictive. I might be a little brainwashed :p

Entertained by Phoenix

They have done it again!  Remember that band from a years back with the title of Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix(also known as Phoenix)?  They had two smash hits, Liztomania and 1901?  Well guess what!  they just came back and they are awesome as ever!  I was reading the lastest edition of Nylon and saw that they made a comeback.  So it was only natural that I would go and check it out.  

What did I find?

My new favorite for the month.   Recently, a song from their new album Bankrupt! leaked on the Internet. Entertainment is only a taste of what is to come from them. Once again, Phoenix has brought their A-game with edgy guitars and retro sounding synthesizers.  They have brought the best of cotton-candy pop (that is a complement).  It’s a kick-back-have-no-worries kind of song.  It is the perfect summer song to listen while traveling, lounging, or just looking to have plain fun.  Seeing as this is only a taste of what is to come, I am extremely excited to see what the band further produces on their new album, said to be released April 23rd!

Entertainment- Phoenix

1901- Phoenix

Liztomania- Phoenix

Stuck on A Lightning Bolt

If you guys have seen the new Gatorade commercial (the one with one of the Williams sisters doing a split) than you probably have heard this song playing in the background.  Well out of a desperate need of a new song, I immediately looked the song, up thanks to  Google. The song was Jake Bugg’s Lightning Bolt single.  I had read/heard about this artist from a year ago and though you should share it with you all.  It is a song worth dancing to.

Home

  Dorothy, from the Wizard of Oz once quoted “There’s no place like home.”  After the last night I could not agree more.  After a long night of mild food poisoning I was pretty much ready to skip out of my dorm room and go home.  If you guys haven’t already guessed, tonight’s song is called Home by Gabrielle Aplin. 

This British singer-songwriter was born in the village of Sutton Benger in Wiltshire, England.  At the age of eleven Aplin was given her first guitar.  Soon she started drawing influences from Bruce Springsteen, Joni Mitchell, and Bob Dylan.  After studying music at City of Bath College, she began to attract a youtube fanbase.  Some of her most popular songs are “Home”(tonight’s song), covers from Celo Green and Katy Perry, and “The Liar and the Lighter.”

Home is by far my favorite song by Aplin.  The true brilliance of the song is the simplicity of the instruments and the descriptive yet relatable lyrics.  Her song has the rare quality of humanity in it.  She has the talent of creating honest and heartwarming lyrics, which is a rare talent.  Her use  of the right amount and tone of guitar, piano, and drums to help contrast her melodic voice is something to be recognized for.  This song is for all music lovers alike.  Her song will truly make you feel like your at home.

Photo from Prettypass.blogspot.com

 

Mayor Hawthorne Melts My Heart

Mayor Hawthorne preformed on Artist’s Den and I thought I should share it!

Lucid Tribes

Over the past days I have felt that I’m losing myself lately.  As of lately, I feel as though I am not satisfied with anything I do.  No matter what there seems to be something weighing.  This is no way to live.  So I opened my copy of this months Nylon and started looking at different bands.  After some time searching around on youtube, I found this awesome rock band, Tribes.  Maybe it’s the dreamy voice of the lead singer or the mellow guitar strings, but tonight’s band hits a cord for any free spirits out there.

The band is composed of four members, Johnny Lloyd, Jim Cratchley, Dan White and Miguel Demelo.  How the band originally came together is unknown, but they all originated from London.  They released their first EP, We Were Children, in April 2011.  Their popularity grew within the United Kingdom, earning them “the Hottest Record in the World” by BBC Radio 1.  They have released one album, two EPs, and three singles.  They are currently recording their second album in LA.

After listening to a lot of music over my break, I think Tribes’ sound is unique compared to many rock bands.  Much of their music is classified as chill and indy-rock.  This might be due to their influences of Nirvana, R.E.M., The Pixies and The Pavement.  My favorite song by them is Coming of Age.  Some of the lyrics are cliché  but sometimes it just the words you need to hear.  The guitar is smooth but somehow raw enough to make stop and listen.  That seems to be the trend, the band is sensitive but still has the rawness of any great rock band.

Coming of Age- Tribes

Alone of With Friends- Tribes

Tired of Playing by Rules

Sometimes the feeling of the world is on your shoulders.  The feeling that everyone around you is playing by a game that you have no interest in playing in. Maybe it is the stress of applying to colleges or life in general, but do you ever feel like you could do more, to be more?  ultimately in order to do that you must change the game and the rules.  So tonight I am going through some of the aspects that make me want to change the game:

Movies: Crossfire hurricane

In all cliché rebellion, you always turn to The Rolling Stones for some raw teenage rebellion .  So flipping through channels I saw a movie centered around the rise of the infamous band.  It was amazing.  I never gave them much attention to the Stones until now.  Through interviews and behind the scene moments, the Stones became even more infamous in my mind.  Highly recommend this movie

Fashion:

Recently I have been in the mode to change up my fashion sense.  I’m tired of playing safe when it comes to dressing up.  So what better way to spice things up with some bold colors and creative patterns.  I logged onto http://www.pixiemarket.com/.  Their stuff was extremely edgy with the right kind of clean cut look.  Combining different designers, the end result is an accumulation of vivid colors, nicely cut shirts and bottoms and bold patterns.  It is the perfect site to find that top that can make a statement.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Music: Chambermaid Swing Parov Stelar

With a new attitude and new look, you need a song to have a good time.  So what better way then a swing.  In Parov Stelar’s new song, the musician manages to make the jazzy music, into an edgy dance party.  So get into party mode and swing like it’s 1920.  Cause if this song has no limits neither do you.

 

An American Adele

If your on the East coast then you know the snow is coming down, coming down hard.  After aimlessly wondering the internet and finishing math homework, I took another look at youtube.  I remembered that I had saved a bunch of songs I liked on my account.  As I was looking I clicked on Elle King’s “No One Can Save You”.  I just felt like this fitted perfectly for the occasion.

For all that do not know, Elle King is an american musician.  Here genre of music include influences from country, rock, blues and soul.  After following music legends such as Otis Redding, the Yeah, Yeah, Yeahs, Johnny Cash and a little AC/DC, she began to create her own music.  Already educated in playing the guitar at the age 13, it was no surprise that she start going to her own gigs at the age of 16.  As of today the talented singer is signed to RCA Records.  Her first EP debut, The Elle King EP, was released by RCA/Fat Possum Records.  Her songs have been featured in shows such as Mob Wives: Chicago.  There she scored the position for the show’s theme song.

As you can already tell by the title, I give Elle King the title of the American Adele.  Her song has the same biting soulful voice of Adele.  In her song, “No One Can Save You”  the lyrics and the melody are so simple.  The complexity of the repeating guitar chords highlight the soulful and sometimes raw voice of King.  Another highlighted feature is the truthful lyrics of the artist.  The song in a of itself is simple and speaks to even the most loneliest  soul.  If you are a fan of Adele, Elle King is a fantastic rising star to listen to.

Elle King- no one can save you :

A Washed Out Winter Sun

Can you believe it!  Winter is practically here.  The best part about that is obviously getting to wake up with sunshine, thanks to daylight savings.  Under all the fun times and weather crisis’, I’m kind of blue.  Mostly stressed by the upcoming results of the presidential election, I needed a new kick-start to get me through the week.  I surprisingly found it in my dance class.  We were doing these attitude swings, to this really chill song.  So tonight’s song is New Theory by Washed Out.

This über chill music, is created by Earnest Greene. After graduating from college, Greene returned back to his home state of Georgia.  There he began to produce some of his music and post it on his Myspace account.  As time went on music bloggers began to take notice.  Soon he released his first EP in August and September 2009.  In 2011 he signed with Sub Hop and released his first album, Within and Without.

I would definitely classify his music as chill pop.  The most interesting characteristic is the use of intricate synths and beats.  The synths add a texture of calmness but with a bit of a grunge-rebel feeling beat to it.  Greene’s voice also adds another element of fun.  Slightly nazeley, it adds a more fun melody to the song.  The best way to describe the song, is the feeling you get looking out the window while drinking steaming hot chocolate, on a cold winter’s day.  Ya it’s that perfect :p. Definitely keep an eye out for this artist!

New Theory- Washed Out