Barn On The Farm 2013 Review

Hello again! I've just about recovered from my first ever music festival which was Barn On The Farm,  and holy cow was it a good one to start with! Never have I been so warm but chilled out at the same time.

The actual set up of this little gem of a festival was great, a cosy field with a little 100m or so dirt road from the 

camping field to the barns, which wasn't too bad in the heatwave that we had. The food and drinks were decently priced and the toilets, which I think EVERYONE was dreading, were actually not too bad (they had an actual flush, toilet paper at all times AND hand sanitizer!!!).

As you could probably tell by reading my previous reviews, the acts in this festival were exactly my sort of thing (I've put a cross next to the acts we saw). I was really worried that there would be some clashes, like Nina Nesbitt, Lauren Aquilina and Leo Stannard, but luckily when an act had finished there was a gap long enough for the one of the other artist's sets on another stage, and I don't think we ended up having any clashes at all!

Everyone we saw was truly incredible, but these are the people that I've never seen live before and definitely stood out to me:

Leo Stannard - I've been hoping to see this guy since his mahogany sessions and he is such a treat live! 

Dog Is Dead - Gutted I couldn't see them in April, but the wait to see them live was definitely worth it. They have so much energy live and had everyone jumping about!

Hudson Taylor - B E A U T I F U L Irish lads with accents and singing voices to die for, definitely worth a listen.

Matt Corby - Someone on here told me to listen to him a few months ago and his voice is incredible, but live his voice is just so powerful, he definitely doesn't hold back or play it safe there! The sound of everyone singing that bit from Brother is definitely something that will stay with me forever.

What made this weekend ever better was that we got to meet a whole load of the acts, which you can see on the flickr account I just created for it, (the link for it HERE if it doesn't appear on my profile).

As a whole, absolutely incredible weekend which I look forward to going to next year, I should definitely remember to put sun cream on my shoulders, and ostriches are scary!

(And a very Happy Birthday to Nina Nesbitt who turns 19 today and played a great set featuring a few new songs from the album which is 'nearly done' and is definitely one of the nicest people I've met at BOTF)

The return of the Arctic Monkeys (and me to blogging!)

Ahhhhhhhhhhhh! Hi again! I've returned from the death-like state of revision and exams, but it's finally over and I'm blessed with the bliss of 10 weeks doing nothing until college!

While I've been away there has been a TON of great new music releases, such as a personal favourite of mine, Robin Thicke - Blurred Lines ft. T.I., Pharrell (which has pretty much been guiding me through exams) as well as the return of the Arctic Monkeys with their new album 'AM' and UK arena tour.

The recent release of their new single 'Do I Wanna Know' which peaked at #11 in the radio 1 official charts, has had over 3 million views since it was first released on their youtube channel on the 18th of June, obviously causing much interest.

The dates for their upcoming UK arena tour are:

October/November 2013

Tues 22nd Oct Newcastle Metro Radio Arena

Wed 23rd Oct Manchester Arena

Fri 25th Oct London Earls Court

Mon 28th Oct Liverpool Echo Arena

Tues 29th Oct Cardiff Motorpoint Arena

Thurs 31st Oct Birmingham LG Arena

Fri 1st Nov Glasgow Hydro

Sat 2nd Nov Sheffield Motorpoint Arena

Tickets for these shows go on sale Friday 5th July at 9am on Ticketmaster and Gigsandtours

Ooops sorry!!

Ahhhhhhhhhhh hello again old friends! So maybe it's been a month or two since the good old 'the next post should be up in a few hours' but all these exams have MASSIVELY crept up on me so maybe I've neglected my blog, a lot!

In these past few months I saw Lauren Aquilina (which was amazing and her performance was full of emotion), Bastille (so good live but I got separated from my friends and one of them fainted!! Nightmare crowd!), Gabrielle Aplin (she has such great talents and she was so nice to meet) and monday night I saw Imagine Dragons (so much better live, really lively but again a nightmare crowd! 'Mosh pits' and what seemed like a 'Wall of death'??? No thanks!)

But in this short time that I do have with you before ANOTHER couple of months away, I'd quite like to recommend a couple of new stuff:

• Bastille's debut album - Bad Blood.Definite contender for my favourite album of the year, and my favourite album so far this year. My picks from the album are Daniel in the den,The Silence (extended edition song), Laughter Lines (extended edition song) and Oblivion.
• Nina Nesbitt - Stay Out EP. A real mix of songs on this, you might have heard 'Stay Out' being played on radio 1, but my personal favourite from the EP is 'No Interest' which is very old school Lily Allen.
• Lewis Watson - Into The Wild EP. Cannot stop listening to this at the minute! And there's a nifty little cover of SBTRKT's song 'Hold On'.

These two are my favourite picks, but I am also quite fond of Imagine Dragon's album Night Visions and Paramore's single Now (I haven't got round to listening to the new album yet though, no time for anything at the minute!).

So I'm afraid I'll have to depart once again into a world of pure revision! (Ps thanks to everyone who has followed me recently/ever! You're all so kind)

(here's a picture I took of Gabrielle Aplin!!)

Step out Into The Wild and Stay Out!

Ahhh! So this post is only, what, two weeks late? Well, sorry about that, I've been ill and over my head in art and maths coursework, but in the meantime some pretty cool stuff has been released onto the internet! Oh, and I wasn't trying to kick you out with the title, they're just some pretty nifty song names that fit together.

First of all, Lewis Watson's new single 'Into The Wild' had it's first play on radio 1! Zane Lowe premièred Lewis' song from his new EP which will be out on the 26th of March and will be available to pre-order tomorrow on valentines day (what a cutie). 

Secondly, Nina Nesbitt has a new single too (Yippee!) it's called 'Stay Out' and the video was released to the internet midnight on Sunday/Monday. You can watch the video here and pre-order her newest EP here. Nina also had a 3 page spread in Bliss magazine to do with 'make up and stuff'.

 

Another thing, I'm seeing Lauren Aquilina next week in Manchester *squee* on my birthday! A gig on your birthday, who wouldn't want that? Lauren's track 'Fools' has been floating around the TV on Hollyoaks, which is quite an achievement for a 17 year old if you ask me! Oh, and did I mention her first headline tour is SOLD OUT? Pretty immense.

Anyway I'm pretty sure I have another post to publish in a few hours, but in the meantime I wish you well and thanks for reading ☺

The usefulness of being (pretty much) bilingual

Growing up, I used to move house from city to city and several times from continent to continent. But because of this, it's meant that I've experienced LOTS of different cultures in the short time I've been alive.

The list of places I've lived in is humongous, however I do have some favourites of where I've lived which are:

Gigs I'm going to this year (so far!)

Last year I went to 15+ gigs, sometimes even two gigs consecutively! Luckily (ish), this year I'm going to far fewer gigs, well so far anyway... So my gig list for this year so far, is as follows:

• Feb 21st (my birthday!) - Lauren Aquilina at the Dry Bar/Night+Day bar: looking forward to this so much! A gig on my birthday from a great up and coming singer as well as great support acts (one who I've seen before at a Nina Nesbitt gig).
• March 5th - Bastille at Manchester Academy 2: me and the academy don't go well together, seeing as when I saw Nina they made me put my (bridge, not even DSLR) camera into the cloakroom which they made me pay for! Nevertheless I've seen videos of Bastille live and the atmosphere looks amazing!
• March 16th - Gabrielle Aplin at Sound Control: last time Gabrielle Aplin was in Manchester I missed out on tickets, but this time we got them nice and early. Sound control is such a nice venue and Gabrielle will definitely use her powerful voice to fill the room.
• April 8th - Imagine Dragons at Manchester Academy 2: once again at the academy, but hopefully the sound of this band will make me forget about the venue!
• June 1st - Muse at The Etihad Stadium: this will be my third time seeing Muse live and each time we have seen them live, they have outdone themselves so I definitely can't wait for this. However, I am dreading this gig slightly as I've got standing tickets! Oh well at least I'll get crushed at a great gig.

Alas, there is my gig diary for this year, however I am missing out on seeing Lewis Watson on his UK headline tour as he didn't put down a Manchester date, and hopefully Nina Nesbitt will be announcing a tour after the release of her new EP Stay Out or after her debut album (both of which will be reviewed on the day released!).

In addition to these gigs, I'm hoping to attend the Dot To Dot festival in Manchester this summer (I was gutted to miss it last year, as a few of my favourite acts performed) but this year I vow to attend it!

Takes one to snow one

Snow is currently sweeping the majority of the UK (which I am delighted about), and thanks to this snow, it means that the country is currently in meltdown because a couple of snowflakes are falling onto the ground. Luckily, this all means that some people are getting time off school/work (which is great for me because I have a chemistry exam to revise for), however some people are getting stranded in places which is really unfortunate ☹ so I hope that anyone who is stranded at home/work is okay and the weather doesn't affect you too much.

On a lighter note, I have been organising a playlist to listen to while I've been at home revising, there's quite a mix of different things on the playlist but so far I've found it really helpful to just be there in the background. So, here it is:

• Daughter - Run
• Ed Sheeran - The City
• Lewis Watson - Into The Wild/Way Of Life (not sure on the name yet as it's very new, but I heard it live at his gig in December)
• Stealing Sheep - Shut Eye
• Ke$ha - C'mon
• Ben Howard - Oats In The Water
• Taylor Ames - Ashes To Ashes
• Thomas J Speight - The River
• Bastille - Pompeii
• Nina Nesbitt - Stay Out (Virgin Media Sessions)
• Bastille ft. Gabrielle Aplin - Dreams (Fleetwood Mac Cover)
• Taylor Swift ft. Ed Sheeran - Everything Has Changed
• Foster The People - I Would Do Anything For You
• Mcfly - Corrupted
• The Temper Trap - Need Your Love
• Imagine Dragons - Hear Me
• Beyonce - Countdown
• Lana Del Rey - Blue Velvet

This is the majority of it, and I'm fully aware that a a few of these songs are very teenage break up cringe songs, but I like them so I'm not too bothered because they're helping me stick facts into my brain.

In other news, art coursework is tough! For my project I chose a 'close up' theme, which I'm hoping to use my camera for, and I'm currently researching Andreas Feininger so hopefully I might make a photo album of photos in his style, for my final piece!

Thanks for reading as always, hope you're all well wherever you are ☺

Why are so many people choosing downloads over actual CDs?

So recently we've heard in the news that entertainment retailer HMV is going into administration after the chain of stores has been seeing sales margins get progressively lower due to the online entertainment market sky-rocketing upwards, but I can't help but think, why?

Personally, I have always preferred going to the shop the day a particular CD is released to buy the physical CD of something, rather than spending a minute buying the download online via itunes. Yes, some would argue that staying awake until midnight to download the CD is exciting, but I'd rather be itching at school, waiting until the end of the day when I can go to the HMV in Bury or Manchester to buy the CD!

Despite this, I do really like the idea of websites like Netflix and LoveFilm which allow you to pay a certain amount a month so that you can watch high quality films and/or TV shows online, which could be really useful if you are on the move, temporarily staying somewhere, or if you're in university. But unfortunately, this still means that less people will go into the shop or online to the website, to buy physical copies.

But HMV also do some really cool stuff that I would really miss due to lack of funds, such as signings/meetings with celebrities and bands (in 2010 I met The Wanted, in 2011 I met The Midnight Beast and in 2012 I met Matt Cardle). HMV also organise some small gigs around the place, like in Manchester we have the HMV Ritz which hosts great people like The Lumineers (which got upgraded to Manchester Academy 1 due to high demand), Lianne La Havas and Ben Howard.

Evidently this new year has proven to be a bad omen to some high street shops as Jessops has also gone into administration and now HMV is looking like it will too. As the online market grows I do fear for high street shops closing down, as they are the only reasons that I will venture outside. I'd rather go out to buy a physical CD in HMV any day rather than download it off of itunes. Sorry itunes....

Virgin Media Music Awards 2013

It's that time of the year approaching again, awards season! This year, I'm taking a bigger interest into music awards and in particular, the virgin media music awards.

As you may know, I love up and coming new artists, as well as older, better known artists, but when I found out that 5 artists that I like were up for a 'Next Big Thing' award, I was truly shocked!

In the 'Next big thing' category are:

• Little Green Cars
• Tom Odell
• Nina Nesbitt
• Bastille
• Rascals
• Gabrielle Aplin
• Mikill Pane
• Angel Haze
• Foxes
• Haim
• Kodaline
• Aluna George

The ones bolded are my personal favourites to win, however I can't choose between them! I know that Haim as well, were marked as BBC Introducing's Big Thing of 2013 (previously won by Ellie Goulding and Florence and the machine). But out of the ones in bold, I really can't decide who I would want to win, they are all hard working and would deserve of the award!

In the 'Best group' category are:

• Little Mix
• JLS
• Muse
• Coldplay
• Blur
• The Stone Roses
• Girls Aloud
• The Maccabees
• The Vaccines
• Swedish House Mafia
• The Wanted (I have a real soft spot for them!)
• One Direction

I would really like any of the three in bold to win the award, the ones I would not be happy to win would be One Direction, Little Mix or JLS (I have a strong dislike for TV talent show offspring).

Who I'd like to win the other categories

Best album

• Jessie Ware - Devotion
• Mumford and Sons - Babel
• Jake Bugg - Jake Bugg
• Lana Del Rey - Born to die

Best Music Video

• Katy Perry - Wide Awake
• Lana Del Rey - Ride
• Calvin Harris ft. Florence Welch - Sweet Nothing

Best Solo Artist

• Calvin Harris
• Lana Del Rey
• Jake Bugg

I really do like the nominations for all the awards this year, although choosing who I'm going to vote for and who I want to win is really difficult, but only time will tell who's the public choose as the best!

You can vote for all the categories by clicking on the headings.

As usual, thanks for reading, and who would you like to win these awards? ☺

Bad Blood

Hello! So hopefully you would have read some of my previous posts and you will know how much of a massive fan I am of Bastille, and when I saw the track listing for their debut album 'Bad Blood', you can guess how excited I was!

According to NME, the album will be released on the 4th of March including their newest single 'Pompeii' which will be released on the 25th of February (the EP released in feb will include 1 song and 3 remixes NOT on the album).

The track listing is as follows:

• Pompeii
• Things We Lost In The Fire
• Bad Blood
• Overjoyed
• These Streets *
• Weight Of Living Pt. II (*)
• Icarus
• Oblivion
• Flaws
• Daniel In The Den *
• Laura Palmer
• Get Home
• Weight Of Living Pt. I (*)
• The Silence *
• Laughter Lines *
• Bad Blood (Live Piano Version)
• Things We Lost In The Fire (Abbey Road Sessions)
• Laura Palmer (Abbey Road Sessions)
• Flaws (Live Acoustic Version)

Some of these songs can be found on youtube however the ones marked with a * are completely new and the one with (*) is vaguely new, however there are a couple of videos of these songs live on youtube. A couple of these have been demos or acoustic versions online. The ones in bold are on the extended cut and include 5 videos.

Lead singer Dan Smith said to NME "I wanted each to be its own story with its own atmosphere which brings in different sounds and elements of production, incorporating aspects of the different genres and styles that I love: hip-hop, indie, pop and folk. Film soundtracks can be broad and varied but tied together by the film itself – and I hope the album will be something like that, but held together by my voice and my songwriting, each song a scene or part of a bigger picture. Some of the album is about stepping back and looking at what kind of person you've become. It’s that dawning realisation that everything has piled up on top of you and it’s up to you, as an adult, to sort yourself out."

 

I'm really looking forward to seeing the demos and acoustics remastered, as well as hearing the new songs on the album. Luckily for me, I'm going to be seeing Bastille the night after their album is released (which fortunately for me, is the night that my 10 hour art exam ends!). I'd definitely recommend Bastille to everyone as all of their songs are so different to each other, each with a different story to tell and a different sound.

Pre-order the album on itunes here or extended cut here

Once again thanks for reading and my previous bastille post can be found here ☺

New year, new music

Hello! So I hope you all had a nice, relaxing break from work/school but unfortunately, most of us are back to the hell of not being able to sleep in all day!

So, as you may have read in my previous blog post, 2012 has been a huge year for emerging artists and you know what that means? A whole bunch of EP's, debut albums and headline tours of course!

Okay so firstly, over the christmas break I discovered a couple of new artists:

• Jake Bugg - Yes we've all known him for a good month or two now, but I really started appreciating his talent when he was on Jools Holland's Hootenany 2012. His voice reminds me of a sort of 60's feel with a tinge of Noel Gallagher and a sprinkling of Alex Turner. This bright young teenager is definitely having a good start to this year! 

• Thomas J Speight - I've been following this artist for a good few months on twitter after hearing a couple of his songs, however I lost track of him until about a week ago when I caught up with his new releases including 'The Willow Tree' EP. His sound is quite Noah and the Whale, mixed with a bit of Chris Martin? Not really sure how to describe him as his songs do very, but he is very capable and gifted and has even been given support from Sir Paul McCartney and Ryan Adams!

• Taylor Ames - I only discovered this gem the other night on twitter, but his voice is so different I had to write about him. His sound is a bit of Ben Howard/Lewis Watson however his voice is very different to any of the artists I've listened to. This guy is very new as he's only been at it for around 3 months and he's already released an EP with 4 tracks (which you can get for free here). I'm very much looking forward to seeing what follows this E over the next few months.

I've also been happy to hear that BBC radio 1 have developed a new show at night which is looking at all the new music releases and artists, which I am absolutely loving! I've already heard a few people I follow but there are so many  people it's hard to keep up with! 

I've also heard news of several EPs and albums to be released over the next couple of months which I can't wait to hear, but in the mean time thanks for reading! ☺