Wednesday 30 November 2011

little update


For those of you wondering where I have disappeared off to, I do apologise. I didn't get lost out in the Cornish countryside (however tempting that sounds), but in fact I've now migrated to university in the heart of Birmingham. Not the most beautiful city to have picked but I'm really having a great time. Plus, (if not a shameless plug), I am now the music editor for iAston Magazine, so if you do happen to stumble across the publication pick it up? Or even have a peek at it online here!

Keep an eye out on my YouTube page, as that's still running in real time (unlike this blog, though I'll still try to update it from time to time) and my Twitter, @besmalucy. Sorry to those lovelies who have been wondering what ever happened to me, I'll repay you one day.

Sunday 7 August 2011

before i disappear off into the cornish countryside...


Take a quick moment to sit back and calm the excitement by listening to
Boards of Canada's In A Beautiful Place Out In The Country.
Let's see how beautiful the country will be in Newquay shall we...

sparkadia: mary


If love is blind then I don't know what I'll find in you...

Well, let's talk more about what's in frontman Alex Burnett's enchanting voice shall we, rather than the not-so-appealing gothic eyeshadow and deathly black hair dye. Not that I have anything against self-expression, I just think it's a style that's been done so many times before... and could pigeonhole Sparkadia for those who watch the video first. Because it was a blind experience for me the first time I heard this song and I loved it perhaps a little bit more than I do after seeing the video. But all the same, it's a song I'd like to share. This guy plays on my guilty pleasures of Miike Snow and Cold War Kids, but I do sense a likeness to Boy & Bear's more folky, stripped back sounds. We'll see how the pendulum swings... (I mean, even now I can see myself finding the repeated "Mare-ray!" getting on my nerves). I think I've just talked myself out of liking this song. If the awful acting and try-hard video didn't do that for me already.

P.S. Well, if you like it, I'd advise you visit Sparkadia's website here; you can download a remix of Mary for free.

Thursday 28 July 2011

bombay bicycle club: shuffle video


I know I've posted and raved about this song already but this video makes me giggle so much. Human bicycle, anyone?

Friday 8 July 2011

peggy sue: cut my teeth


 I wonder who the muse for this song was.

The first song to be released from Peggy Sue's second album, and it's growing on me. It's lost the layers of acoustic guitar that made me bob around to songs like Yo Mama and Fossils And Other Phantoms as a whole, and with my weakness for anything with acoustic guitar it's a real shame, but nevertheless I can't help going back and listening to it over and over again. The darker sounds from the electric guitar work well, especially coupled with the fierce and perhaps slightly morbid lyrics of "I cut my teeth, on his flesh, and watched him weeping, as I left". Acrobats, the title of their second album, will be out on the 12th September - another album to look out for that month.

P.S. You can download Cut My Teeth for free from Peggy Sue's website here.

Tuesday 28 June 2011

viva brother


Brother have changed their name to Viva Brother to avoid legal action.
In other news, doesn't frontman Lee Newell bear an uncanny resemblance to La Roux?

I'm not sure who the more unfortunate is.

Sunday 26 June 2011

ben howard: the wolves


Perfect for a summery Sunday afternoon.
Waiting for sunsets and surfing in Newquay.

Friday 24 June 2011

foster the people: pumped up kicks


For those few moments in my English exam this morning where I had mental blocks,
thank you Foster The People for filling the time with this song going round and round in my head. And for that euphoric moment knowing my school life is officially over.

Thursday 23 June 2011

laura marling: a creature i don't know



Awaiting autumn for the album...

A balmy rose-tinted video, alongside Laura Marling's quite morose little song. It looks like Marling's grown out of her cutesy ways for good since Alas I Cannot Swim, and into this more mature, wiser, almost older-than-her-years style. Sombre and sophisticated, yes, but as enjoyable? Laura Marling's third album, of the same name, is due out 12th September. Another something to brighten up the end of the summer months.

Look out for more from Miss Marling on her website, here.

P.S. Go back and have a look at Bombay Bicycle Club: Shuffle to have a listen!

Tuesday 21 June 2011

hitten a brick wall


A poor play on words, please forgive me. Perhaps it is down to the up-coming demise of my short-lived English education, but I've only just realised how much I'm going to miss those lessons. Mainly the creative writing and the editorials, but nonetheless, a sad sad day awaits on Friday.

The First Day of Summer hasn't exactly been what I expected it to be - driving about (with my driving instructor - we're best buds, so I take him for a drive every now and then... ah, who am I kidding? I just haven't passed yet) in infrequent little spitting showers and bursts of sunlight. Then hayfever-y snivels all day and a quick trip into what I like to think is my true childhood home (as a village girl at heart, and as the backdrop for most of my dreams, bizarrely enough. The actual place where I live barely features compared).

I just feel a little mixed up with everything, and if I really am going to link in why I've placed Those Dancing Day's Hitten as the video above this blog, it's the sentiment of the poppy lyrics. "I wanna know what I'm thinking, what I'm feeling, what I want my life to be," is kinda the way I'm feeling right now. Exams have consumed my life! And this Friday, being spat back out into a life where I can leave the house (gasp!), with no true indication of where I will be living in four month's time, who I'll be with, and how I'll actually be surviving, the demise of not only English but my education, school, the place where I've spent almost half my life... it's a startling idea. I'll have my job, yes, and a few holidays, true, but the rest of the summer?

We'll have to wait and see.
World, I'd like you to meet my impulsive, carefree side.

the lovin' spoonful: daydream


Happy First Day of Summer!

lykke li: i follow rivers


One-woman powerhouse.

I can't say I'm completely in love with the branch of music that Lykke Li does so well, but I would be lying if I said this song isn't ghostly brilliance. Perhaps not an artist I will be buying in to, but showing my love for this song is no crime, is it?

Visit Lykke Li's website here, plus sign up to her mailing list here to download the fierce "Get Some" and beautifully dark and dangerous track, "Paris Blue", for free.

Saturday 18 June 2011

a rainy saturday afternoon


My daydream:
This, and a doorstop-sized piece of cake, and tea. In my pyjamas. Pretty please.

I made the most bitter-sweet discovery this week: I could go and see Slow Club, Emmy The Great, The Kooks, Cloud Control, Bombay Bicycle Club, Noah & The Whale, Lykke Li, Arctic Monkeys and Bon Iver all within the first two months of going to university. Orrrrr, I could spend my time and student loan on other, more trivial things, such as university. It's a toughie. I really don't want to have to choose!

I've got them all calendar-ed up anyway. Being the optimist, hoping my horoscope actually proves to be correct and I will find myself inundated with money in the next few months. My fingers are oh-so tightly crossed.

Before that though, crossing them even harder for this last week of exams. Wish me luck!
(I'll go back to revising now, I promise.)

Wednesday 15 June 2011

arcade fire: ready to start


P.S. My tickets to see these came through today! Fifteen days baby!

alana stewart: momma says


Regina Spektor's voice, reincarnated?

Just thought I'd pop on and post the video, after hearing it on Steve Lamacq's show during a whimsical pitta-bread sandwich, (at three o'clock in the afternoon - my second lunch today). My body might be out of sync but my mind is crammed full of revision, oh joy. Thank god for good music keeping me going. Even with this dizzy headache of mine, and strange twists in my stomach.

Go find out more about Alana Stewart at her myspace, here.

Monday 13 June 2011

lucy rose: middle of the bed


This song breaks a little bit of my heart, every time.

Such a shame that I missed her performance in Milton Keynes (possibly my fault, but the bouncer was a gentleman and let us watch the warm ups anyway). Middle of The Bed is the first single from Lucy Rose's upcoming album, available to download on 21st July (although physical copies will be at her gig in London on 5th July... I'll wait until she releases her tour dates to see her, I think). I can't wait, all the same.

Hop over to her website here to learn more.

Sunday 12 June 2011

those dancing days: i'll be yours


Be my best friends?

Slipping into my comfy old slippers and nodding along to this, wishing for some hot tomato soup. Possibly the next best thing to revision, considering the up-beat-i-ness is keeping me going. Shall promise to have a search around for some spare coins for their album, Daydreams & Nightmares, which you can buy here (a little electronic in places, but the Kate Nash / Pipettes sound is still there, making it a guilty pleasure of mine). Otherwise visit their rather nice website here. Have a happy Sunday!

Friday 10 June 2011

arctic monkeys: the hellcat spangled shalalala



Summer Soundtrack #1?

There's little I can say that hasn't already been said, but I can't get enough of this right now. Having slim-lined the music I listen to, it's nice to suddenly rediscover why you liked certain bands in the past, and the Arctic Monkeys have fallen into that category. Whatever People Say... has become one of those albums I rediscover every couple of months and have a great time listening through, but Favourite Worst Nightmare often wore a little thin, and with Humbug falling out of my shopping list completely (due to all the negative reviews, I have to admit - although as a reviewer I should really be taking note of others, shouldn't I?), I'm desperate to find the money to add this to the list of albums that are going to make my summer this year. Welcome back (into my life, anyway).

Visit the Arctic Monkey's website here.

slow club: two cousins


Again, perhaps a little eager on the uptake, but I just can't help myself. Slow Club's new album is just around the corner and they're going to let us take a peek by releasing the video of the first single from the album, Two Cousins, on 13th June. Pop over to their website next week and see!

P.S. I'll hopefully be able to post it here when it does come around, so keep your eyes peeled! It's an exclusive on their website, so click on over there now! (Don't worry about only being able to see a snippet of the video, enter your e-mail address and you'll get the goods. It took me a while to work out, I'll admit!) I've finally managed to post the video, although I'm sure all you eager lot have already watched it!
P.P.S. Tune in to Red Bull Studios at 7pm, 21st June to hear them play songs from the album too.

Tuesday 7 June 2011

bombay bicycle club: shuffle



Perhaps a little too early to say, but the Bombay boys are back with a new album, A Different Kind of Fix, and from it "Shuffle" will be their first single (due out 26th June). The album will be released 29th August, though those of you lucky people with festival tickets will hear it first (lucky me!) Visit their website here, and if you're eager enough, buy some tickets too...

emmy the great: paper forest (in the afterglow of creation)


Also billed as Paper Forest (In The Afterglow of Rapture).
This is the reason why I will be buying Emmy's album. And it really is a brilliant album.

Stream Emmy The Great's full album, Virtue, on the Guardian website here.
Then buy it when it's released on 13th June via her website, right here.

Monday 6 June 2011

Friday 3 June 2011

coldplay: every teardrop is a waterfall


A rather boring video, a rather incredible song.

I have a feeling I'm going to fall in love with Coldplay all over again. After the full-blown romance with  Viva La Vida, (perhaps a forgotten lover of mine now... I may go dust it off), this song, despite its more electronic-sounds, has just started my infatuation again.
Jumping around the sunny kitchen to this.

daughter: bbc radio 6 music session



Caught Daughter's live session on BBC Radio 6 Music today, and it really brought a smile to my face being able to hear the voice know who was behind the beautiful music. And what a voice. Playing "Landfill" and "Candles" live, I had to put down my cheese-on-toast and just listen.  You can hear the session here (although it will only be available until 7th June), or listen to the two above videos taken from Daughter's YouTube.

And then download her free four-track "Demos EP" here
And then buy her album "His Young Heart" on Bandcamp here
And then love.

belle and sebastian: the blues are still blue


It's a Belle & Sebastian kinda day.

Wednesday 1 June 2011

emmy the great: iris


For the "Princesses of Impermanence".

Okay so, this song/video/lovely lady has pinpointed my dilemma exactly. Sometimes it's better to appreciate all the little things than strive for tomorrow's gifts. (Enough of the wisdom already, I just know you're all sighing. Okay.) Such a cutesy song, a brilliant first single from Emmy's second album entitled "Virtue". I'm so so tempted to pre-order it, before it's release on the 13th June. Hmm. I think I can wait that long...

Visit her website here and have a gander.

P.S. Listen her album, Virtue, on the Guardian's website here.
Also accompanied by a guide to each song. Listen. Love.

Tuesday 31 May 2011

bon iver: calgary


The first single from Bon Iver's eponymous second album, and it seems rather promising. Of course, as a Bon Iver lover I would be a little bias, so I'll trust you to make up your own minds. However, for now you can get Calgary for free on 4AD's website right here, along with dates of their UK/EU tour (oh so tempting!).

P.S. (Is it me, or is Bon Iver's website not running?)

alex winston: choice notes


Even if the egg-shaker guy steals the show, 
Alex Winston's Choice Notes is definitely an infectious-smile kinda song.


Sister Wife, her "debut mini-album", may be a bit too sugary-sweet for my liking, with the title track's lyric "you don't know the way to his hear-ar-ar-ar-at" very reminiscent of (dare I say it), Disney's Enchanted, but it's a happy little six track EP that'll keep you dancing (around the T K Maxx dressing room, if nothing else...)

Oh, I apologise for my flippancy. Perhaps it is branching off my usual tastes, but having first discovered her through live sessions online a few months ago (both Watch Listen Tell and La Blogotheque have snapped her up) she is talented, even if I do prefer the stripped down versions. However, if you like the recorded music more and want a free snippet of her album, visit her website here and donate your e-mail address to download "Don't Care About Anything". In fact, it's debatably the closest to stripped down on the album. You decide.

dark dark dark: daydreaming


Nothing like a bit of haunting piano music.

...Although, the rest of the album is also worth a listen, with the accordion and violin giving it a nice up-beat twist in places. Visit Dark Dark Dark's website and sign up to their mailing list for a free download of this song.

Monday 30 May 2011

dry the river: bible belt


Memory is a funny little thing. I thought I'd posted about these guys months and months ago, but it appears I didn't. There's no proof of my stumbling upon them, except signing up to their mailing list many moons ago. Of course, it's another gorgeous balmy summer video from Watch Listen Tell, and with the acoustic guitar and violin (plus broken arm), it's now the first thing I think of when coming across the band's name (which keeps cropping up recently - perhaps it's a sign?)

Have a listen. Visit their myspace. Watch as they grow even more. And for those explorers out there, perhaps find the little secret attached to this five-minute acoustic session...

Saturday 28 May 2011

efterklang + vincent moon: an island



Now give yourself fifty minutes.

If I'm honest, I've worked backwards from stumbling across the film (initially, Vincent Moon was the clincher) on 4AD's website, to finding Efterklang's website and then a few of their videos on YouTube. The ghostly music draws only a slight Sigur Ros comparison from my (perhaps limited) music library, but it does lend itself well to a film soundtrack. And with Moon behind the camera, I'm pretty sure it's an intriguingly beautiful film at that. 

You can buy An Island here (don't skip the uplifting little intro), with donations going directly to the band and cameraman.

efterklang: doppelgänger


Give yourself six minutes.

Tuesday 24 May 2011

benjamin francis leftwich: box of stones


I don't think I need to say much about this. A little piece of perfection in so many ways.
Mister Leftwich releases his album, Last Smoke Before The Snowstorm, on July 4th.

Roll on the summer...

Tuesday 17 May 2011

noah and the whale + la blogotheque




What you get when you put one of the best bands together with one of the best independent film makers and one of the best french websites and throw in a blue and yellow puffa jacket.
(Chryde and Vincent Moon, I love you!)

Happy Tuesday!

Thursday 5 May 2011

spot the difference

Just a sweet little observation when looking through some album art.

Sunday 1 May 2011

submarine




This film looks to be the most beautiful and possibly my favourite film of all time already. And I've only seen the trailer.
Desperate to see it, sounds like such an odd little story line about coming-of-age (some of the best material for books, I have so many favourites). Oh and because Alex Turner did the soundtrack. And because Richard Ayoade produced it (wow, he's actually amazing. New found respect!). And all the cute clothes and camera angles. And the accents.
(Even if I am purposefully forgetting where I recognise the main characters from.)

Saturday 30 April 2011

brother: darling buds of may

A band that's been on my radar for a while, even without much material out there yet. Having stumbled across them in December last year, I haven't really gotten round to listening to them until now - after being prompted by remembering they're performing at a local venue pres moi. With it's catchy guitar riffs and oohs, Darling Buds of May is quite firmly lodged in my head - whether I'll tire of it remains to be seen...

Friday 29 April 2011

agnes obel: riverside

So I'm not normally one to pay much attention to plugs, or Spotify adverts, but I did come across Agnes Obel a few months ago and couldn't help getting caught up in the haunting Riverside again.

It's all freezing rain and roaring sea... the pier and the fear of jumping, of moving, of leaving. (Another sparkle of inspiration and another chapter in the book I am yet to finish. I'll keep you posted).

You can also get a free download on Agnes Obel's Facebook page here (I'm not sure why, but I don't really like artists using Facebook as their principal online home... I always prefer a MySpace/Bandcamp/webpage), or visit her website here.

Sunday 24 April 2011

ben howard: old pine


Another act lined up for Boardmasters and another artist that I'm growing to love (possibly because of how beautiful the video is, the sea and surfing and sunset-tinted everything, how could I resist? Hopefully a glimpse of what it's going to be like in Newquay in August...)

You can also get a free download of "Soldiers" on his website here.

Monday 18 April 2011

daughter: demos ep


I've given myself a week alone with Daughter's (or Elena Tonra's) EPs, and I'm still yearning to listen to them all over again. The cold, melancholy Tomorrow has to be my favourite track, suiting the frozen-over lake in the artwork. Enchanting, almost haunted in places, the demos are quite dark, coupled with Peter in the video above, it is a little reassuring to see her grinning at the end. 

In all fairness, I'm yet to listen to her album "His Young Heart" on Bandcamp, so give me this afternoon alone with that too? A nice little accidental discovery, I have to admit.

Download Daughter's 4-track Demo EP for free from her MySpace, here.
Visit her Bandcamp here.

Friday 15 April 2011

spotify's upcoming changes

Spotify is a beautiful idea. A world where you can share music with friends (both publicly or privately), peruse albums of pretty much any artist, whether hugely popular or tiny tiny up-and-comers. In fact, the smaller the artist, the better. The program allows all us music fans to share all our tiny discoveries with each other. So let me come clean - I do find myself using up to my limit of twenty free hours of music a month. And in most ways, it has helped me to support these artists, publicise them on this blog and buy into them (both music-wise and gig-wise).

So it comes as a bit of a shock (even though I did have some suspicions, considering I am slowly learning the art of business) that Spotify will be adding new, tighter limitations to all users of Spotify Open. Daniel Ek, the founder of Spotify, released a blog today informing all us Spotify Open users of these changes, in which, he encourages us "heavier users" to buy into Spotify Premium. Nice tactic, and nice persuasion skills, except it seems all too clear that Spotify is shifting its vision from popularising music to making money from it. By putting forth limits on current customers suggests our loyalty is not of much value to them, even if we do put up with those irritating adverts every five or ten minutes.

Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but those customers who were invited into the service still receive their unlimited usage, even after Spotify Open's terms changed in the past? This only skews the unfairness further (perhaps an immature view, but if we are all free users, we should all be treated the same. If changes are put in place, and they did not affect previous customers, why are they now going to affect customers from before November 2010?)

In my opinion, only new users of May 1st should find themselves with these new limitations.

Another startling idea is the ability to only being allowed to play a song five times per month. Where is the ingenuity in a service with such harsh limitations? For a service which has collaborated listening to music via YouTube (limitless) and MySpace (limitless for members), finding new artists on Bandcamp (again, limitless to listen to entire albums) and sharing music directly on Facebook and physically, Spotify is effectively making itself redundant.

I appreciate the idea behind it all, and the enjoyment I have gotten from the program in the past. However there will always be a certain resentment come May 1st, one which will discourage me further from buying Spotify Premium.

Read the blog post "Upcoming changes to Spotify Free/Open" from Daniel Ek here.

Wednesday 13 April 2011

nick hornby: about a boy

The latest read accompanying me and my picnic blanket out in the garden is Nick Hornby's About A Boy (that is if the sun does come back anytime soon...).

It's one of those books that reassures you that you're a relatively normal human being, compared to Will and Marcus and Fiona. If anything, it's made me love my family more for every little thing we do for each other. And the beautiful speech by Rachel about having something to live for, even without a family, job or true friends except that odd twelve-year-old boy who insists on coming over to your flat gives a little bit of hope as I'm prepping for my A-Level finals. I might fail, but I will never be living off the income of a cheesy Christmas hit (phew).

Considering I was born a year after the book was set, it's always nice to learn that there were some fashion- and music-conscious people in the nineties (I think the weakest decade out of all my music is the nineties... personally, all I can remember was the yo-yo craze and Pokemon cards, so that could be why). Even if it was Adidas and Kurt Cobain.

Another one of those books that I judged by its cover before buying, I have to admit, although I did have an inkling of who Nick Horby was. Perhaps not a life-changing book (just yet, having read three-quarters of it), but another one to add to the collection of any-day reads.

Tuesday 12 April 2011

lori campbell: homesick


Another act lined up for Boardmasters that I can't wait to see... visit her myspace here.

spokes: we can make it out



My socks have just been blown off, so I'm posting this little video now. It may just seem like another indie band with a meaningful video, but listen to Spokes' Everyone I Ever Met or Peace Racket up loud in your headphones to lose your socks for good.

(Thankfully, my Boardmasters ticket is already on its way, so here's to seeing them in August!)

Listen to more Spokes on their myspace here.

Sunday 3 April 2011

coldplay: green eyes

And honey, you should know, that I could never go on without you...

james vincent mcmorrow: from the woods



The Bon Iver comparisons may be true, but he does have his own flavour (have a listen to The Sparrow and The Wolf on his album, Early In The Morning. The upbeat folkiness of it, mmmm!) I did find a free download of If I Had A Boat a few months back, which set me on his trail, but I'm unsure if it's still on his website... I'll get back to you on that.

Visit James Vincent McMorrow's website here.

Thursday 31 March 2011

lucy rose's album...


Because I'm excited. Seven days until I see her live!

kate nash live


(Unfortunately this is the only video I've been able to find, admittedly Dickhead is not my favourite song, but I sang along quite happily... Yes she made me merry, made me very very happy.)

She was cute and, of course, feisty. Certainly enjoyed attending her Rock N Roll For Girls After-School Music Club, and learning about how she's trying to help more females get into the music industry on their own terms.

Visit her website here to learn more or attend!

Sunday 20 March 2011

arcade fire: the suburbs




So, secretly this might be the best eighteenth birthday present I received... the album is no less than phenomenal.

From the first cymbal crash to the last whispered lyric, it's a beautiful, solemn, fierce and almost haunting memoir of teenage-hood, of living on the suburbs themselves. The familiar, almost friendly title track starts the album off, a prologue of things to come; "sometimes I can't believe it, I'm moving past a feeling..." then crashing into Ready To Start, and slipping an orchestra behind the drums, guitar and vocals. I've refrained from using the cliche "emotional rollercoaster", but it truly is every emotion; from the shouted chorus of Empty Room to the cold, slow and traumatic imagery in Sprawl I (Flatland) - it's nothing short of a novel in music form.

Which of course, is now also the soundtrack to Scenes From The Suburbs, a short film inspired by the album (some scenes of the film are featured in the above video for The Suburbs, see the trailer for Scenes From the Suburbs underneath it too). Unfortunately there's no way of buying the film yet, although if I had gone to South by Southwest this year, I would have seen the screening of it (in no way am I bitter about it at all, whatsoever, it's fine, it's fine, there's always next year I guess...) but I'm keeping my eyes peeled for when it will be available in the good ol' United Kingdom - according to Arcade Fire's YouTube, it will be released in May/June this year. Until then, it's all earphones and imagination.

Visit Arcade Fire's website here.

Monday 14 March 2011

dancing in my birthday suit...

Happily turned eighteen this week, and what a week it's been. Forget the sixth form and the work for a minute, (I neatly tucked them away on the back burner this past weekend) as I got out and had some fun (albeit sober fun, but fun all the same).

Muscially speaking, it was a brilliant week too. I received Arcade Fire's The Suburbs, was bought The Maccabees' Wall of Arms and also was leant Neon Bible. (I know, all things I should already own, it's true. Well, I do now!)

Plus on top of that, a few gigs coming up, all of which were funded on borrowed and now birthday money: next week, it's Kate Nash, then Lucy Rose in April and Arcade Fire, Mumford & Sons, The Vaccines and Beirut in June. Roll. On. This. Summer.

Just a snippet of how beautiful my music life is right now, whilst I watch everything else go to pot.
That's the fun of being a student, right? Right?!

Tuesday 1 March 2011

noah and the whale: last night on earth

They're a band I'm in love with. The album was not love at first listen for me, however. Sounding very different to The First Days of Spring (more so than First Days did compared to Peaceful, The World Lays Me Down), it's more of a grower, with L.I.F.E.G.O.E.S.O.N. picking the album up and spinning it out into something more beautiful, if not still a little too eighties for my liking. I can't say I'll be swapping it for First Days, which really is melancholy perfection, but I will be ordering and locking myself in a room with it for a few nights (so as to give a proper listen and opinion, meaning this blog will most probably be rendered useless...)

Listen to it here for free // Visit Noah & The Whale's website.

Saturday 26 February 2011

laura marling: alas i cannot swim



Okay, so please forgive me for only just popping this beauty of an album on my blog; it's not like I've only just discovered Miss Marling, I just haven't gone back through the archives from before I was blogging. (I have a feeling this will be a common thing, since there are so many artists and albums from the past that I cannot hush up about).

It's been an odd week, so visiting this album helped to restore a bit of my old self, especially Tap At My Window and Your Only Doll. It's a happier, more youthful album than I Speak Because I Can (although another beauty) and has been helping me get through the bundles of coursework I've been doing over the last few days.

So I give my full, if not belated, thanks to Laura Marling, and if I wish hard enough and keep a beady eye out, hopefully I'll get to see her this year. That'd be lovely.

Visit Laura Marling's website here.

Sunday 20 February 2011

postsecret



My little discovery yesterday was the PostSecret blog; an amazingly simple concept yet so intriguing, both for the writers and the readers. Postcards with your deepest darkest secrets and the guarantee of complete anonymity seems pretty liberating. I'm kinda addicted already, flicking through the secrets of strangers, and also on the PostSecretFrance site, where I feel like I'm doing some kind of french homework too... although I secretly know I'm not. Maybe that should go on my postcard?

Saturday 19 February 2011

benjamin francis leftwich: pictures

This was also a wednesday night discovery for me, but it's taken me a while to find the man behind the beaut of a song... A friend and I were talking in the car with the radio on in the background, and I literally zoned out of the conversation as I was listening to this. I caught some lyrics and locked them away so I could find the song once I was home, but only now found the video. It was worth the wait.

Visit Benjamin Francis Leftwich's website here.


P.S. I apologise to the friend I zoned out on. But I did have a very, very good reason to!

Thursday 17 February 2011

never let me go

Another cinema trip this week to see Never Let Me Go, a film I have been looking forward to for literally months, mainly due to the sepia-tint and Carey Mulligan (of whom I have been a fan since she appeared on Doctor Who... a show I no longer watch since the farewell to David Tennant, I must admit).

It wasn't exactly the cutesy film I had in mind, yet with such a deep storyline it truly was something better, if not a lot darker.

Which in many ways I respect more.

If I'm honest, I have never felt a stronger urge to cry at a film (I did so, and walked out unashamedly with my tear-stained cheeks). Apparently it has been criticised for not sustaining an emotional link between the audience and the characters, but for me I felt this was almost deliberate, as the children seem shy, innocent creatures with no real sense of the world and their emotions. Especially once their pre-chosen future is revealed to them; at first, the way they do not seem to grasp the gravity of their destinies, but then the way the grow with it and let the viewers watch it destroy them.

Tragically beautiful. A book I must read this summer, even with its haunting storyline.

Monday 14 February 2011

boy & bear: mexican mavis


I stumbled upon Boy & Bear a while back, but only recently searched out their MySpace and other videos on YouTube... For me they're a cross between Fleet Foxes and Mumford & Sons, so I'm getting ready for a lovely folksy soundtrack to this year's summer (especially if they release an album before then).

If you listen/like/love, visit my YouTube channel here for some more of their music videos?

Visit Boy & Bear's MySpace here // Sign up to their mailing list here to download Mexican Mavis for free.

Thursday 10 February 2011

zadie smith: white teeth

A book I finished reading a while back, although one which I will be adding to my book collection (yes, I am a regular user of the library, and proud!)

It popped up in my life again after I found the television adaptation on 4OD, so I'm currently going through the episodes which are, incredibly, the best adaptation of a book I've probably ever seen (some serious credit due to Simon Burke, as the book's complex twists and turns have somehow managed to be beautifully condensed into less than four hours of film).

If you're a 70's, 80's or 90's child then you're gonna love it. Or even if you're in it just to see a young John Simm, James McAvoy and Russel Brand...

Normally I'd say watch the film/television version first, then read the book to avoid disappointment, but I don't think that's necessary.

I've got to admit, I aspire to be able to write like Zadie Smith. One day, maybe.
Watch the television adaptation here.

Monday 7 February 2011

black swan

So last week I coloured my Wednesday orange and went to see Black Swan with a few friends.

First of all, I was NOT expecting it to be so psychologically dark.
But brilliantly done, to be fair. Even down to the way Nina dresses in white and Lily in black.

And Natalie Portman definitely deserves an award or two, her acting was incredible. Especially compared to the only other film I've seen her in... Mr Magorium's Wonder Emporium.

Still a little bit creeped out by all the blood, but for a film I wasn't too bothered about seeing, I loved it.

One to see at the cinema, but I doubt I'll be buying it on DVD.

Monday 31 January 2011

david mitchell: black swan green

This is the book I'm currently reading - I took a break (time for reading in my life is scarce at best of times anyway, so being a busy bee hasn't helped), but I'm back into this beauty of a book.

If I'm honest, I have been a bit shallow when it's come to choosing books recently - if the cover is cute, I'll go for it. This one really is even better inside though - inside the odd little mind of a 1970's child and his ghostly, if not delicious, explorations.

Another keeper, plus after this it's straight on to buying Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell too.

Monday 24 January 2011

lucy rose: nightbus


I can't stop listening to her, yet the only material she's released are the two free songs on her website. Hopefully will see her on the little tour she's doing around the UK this year.