Category Archives: Music

Nov7

Lil Red Recommends – Part 4!

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Lil Red Recommends – Part 4!

Hello all and happy Friday!!!! It’s time for the annual Lil Red Recommends post for the week, so here we go!

Read Before I Go To Sleep: Seriously. Do it. This book is honestly so much better than Gone Girl. In this novel we follow Christine, a forty-seven year old woman with severe amnesia. Her case is unique though, because her memory disappears as soon as she wakes up from a nights sleep. We join her in her quest to regain her memory and learn about her dark and troubled past. This book is such a page turner. I’m more than halfway through and I still can’t draw any conclusions on how the ending will turn out. I’m particularly excited to finish the book so I can see the movie which is out in theaters with my mom. The fabulous Nicole Kidman plays Christine and the DREAM BOAT Colin Firth plays her husband, Ben. If you liked reading Gone Girl, you’re going to LOVE Before I Go To Sleep.

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Listen to Courtney Barnett: I absolutely ADORE this chick. We played a few of her songs at PacSun and I had always semi enjoyed them but it was once I started playing her outside of work that I fell in love. Her lyrics are so quirky and cool, IE: “The yard is full of hard rubbish it’s a mess and
I guess the neighbors must think we run a meth lab” from Avant Gardener. There’s so many times when I’m listening through her charming EP “A Sea Of Split Peas” where I laugh to myself and think “what did she just say?!” Her sound is extremely unique as well, it’s fairly folksy but it’s her voice that really does it for me. She has this ability to make her voice sound like it’s droning on for eternity which sounds unpleasant but it’s actually quite amazing. Her monotonous vocals allow you to hear every aspect of the story she’s trying to tell in each of her songs.

Make a to do list: I’ve grown SO fond of making to do lists since I started college. Usually I prepare my lists for each day the night before, so it’s nice to have everything you need to accomplish that day planned out for you. And let me tell you, there’s nothing better than checking off each thing you’ve completed from your list. It’s so damn fulfilling! My to do lists have taught me how to prioritize and learn better time management skills which is going to be so important once I start delving deeper into my college career. A daily to do list is simple but effective and I can’t recommend making them enough!

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Get cozy: So if you read my OOTD: College Kid Edition post, you’ll know that I ended up wearing sweat pants to class and it was life changing. So I encourage all of you to get comfy cozy for the day and do work! Wear your favorite comfort piece and flaunt it like the hot tamale that you are. This could be anything – from your hoodie that you sleep in almost every night to your worn in Hawthorne Heights t-shirt that you still have from high school. Anything is fair game. My college sweat pants experience taught me that there’s nothing wrong with “bummin it” every so often. So I guess I’ll be breaking out my Hawthorne Heights tee pretty soon 😉

^^^ JUDGE ME FOR IT!!!

Stock up on cold weather accessories: I LOVE fall and winter time accessories so very much. I’m talking cute boots, knit scarves, stylish hats, and my personal favorite: fingerless gloves. All of these accessories are the epitome of treating yourself. Nothing adds a little extra oomph to your outfit than a fun new fashion statement. I’m really hoping that I can go to TJMaxx soon to pick out some new cold weather gear. As a matter of fact, my favorite all time pair of fingerless gloves came from TJ’s! There’s a really adorable store in a mall that I like going to called Charming Charlie and they’re full of gorgeous winter accessories. If you don’t have one in your area, here’s their website so you can check them out online! http://www.charmingcharlie.com/

gloves

Have a dinner date with a girlfriend: This week I had the most delightful time going out to dinner with my best friend Kate. We went to the Cheesecake Factory which is our favorite place to eat at together. It was so nice to be able to enjoy the atmosphere and the yummy food amongst great company. Enjoying a meal where you don’t have to think about anything but shoving more cheesecake down your throat is my definition of a good time. My recommendation is to incorporate a shopping trip into the dinner date as well! Kate and I usually hit up one of the higher end malls in the Akron/Cleveland, Ohio area which makes for a lovely afternoon trip. And nothing says girl time like a shopping day followed by a dinner date – so fun!

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^^ Some of the many delicious desserts offered at the Cheesecake Factory. I’m gaining weight just looking at it!

Listen to Hamilton Leithauser: I’ve been really enjoying listening to this young man’s album “Black Hours” as of late. His voice is just intoxicating to me. It’s the perfect combination of folk and rock and roll. His music was played fairly frequently at PacSun and the song that always stuck out to me every time we played it was “Alexandra”. The opening lyrics of “I don’t have to, I don’t need to – but I’m always thinking of you” are so sweet! It makes me wish that I was this Alexandra that Hamilton is singing about!!! HUBBA HUBBA. 😉

So there you have it! My Lil Red Recommendations for the week! What are you guys up to this weekend? Whatever you’re plans are, I hope you have a great time doing them! And if you have any questions or concerns, leave me a comment and let’s chat! -Sarah

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Oct27

My Positivity Playlist

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My Positivity Playlist

So whenever I’m feeling a little down in the dumps, I always tend to gravitate towards my depressing music – which I’m sure is true for a lot of you guys as well. Today I made it a point to only play songs on my iPod that hype me up and make me happy while I was getting ready for the day. Like my cover image says: Every minute spent frowning is sixty seconds of smiling wasted. Besides, it takes more muscles to frown than to smile if I’m not mistaken! So here’s a few songs that I played today that really helped send a surge of positivity through my veins!

Adam Lambert: If I had You. I looooove this song. It makes me want to get up and dance and be as sassy as possible. (I can’t promise you that I looked good while dancing though – but I had fun and that’s all that matters!)

Bleached: Dead in Your Head. This song is full of girl power fun. I was introduced to Bleached at PacSun and am so glad for that. You can also hear this song played on MTV on commercials and in an episode of Awkward.

Cobra Starship: Nice Guys Finish Last. PLEEEASE judge me for getting down to some Cobra Starship, I dare you 😉 They definitely are a guilty pleasure of mine. But that’s the beauty of a positivity playlist – if the song makes you happy then who cares if it sucks?!

Taylor Swift: Shake it Off. I know, I know – shocking. I actually hate Taylor Swift, BUT my mom loves her so I’m forced to hear this song on the radio a lot in the car. “Don’t turn it off Sarah!” This tune grew on me like a fungus and I’m surprised to say I’m not even mad about it!

Mika: Love Today. If you read my past article Lil Red Recommends – part 3, you’ll already know how much I love Mika. This song is probably one of my favorites of his. I love trying to match his falsetto and doing many a hair whips to the beat, a la Willow Smith 😉

Pharrell: Gust Of Wind. This song is FANTASTIC. I loved whenever we would play it at Pac so very much. The lyrics are pretty out there “when I open the window, I wanna hug you, cause you remind me of the air”. So it’s fun to mumble along with what you think are the correct lyrics while Pharrell sings away.

Jonas Brothers: Burnin’ Up. Once again, a MAJOR guilty pleasure! I love those damn Jo-Bros so much it hurts. This song is one of myself and sisters’ funky time jams. Every time we take a longer drive together to where ever we need to be, rest assured that this song plays at least once. High heels (high heels), Red dress (RED DRESS!!!!!)

The Kills: Sour Cherry. Ha cha cha, this song is sassy sexy fun. Alison Mosshart’s sultry voice instantly makes me feel like a bad ass whenever I hear it. Dancing to this little ditty involves a lot of head banging and hip shaking! 😉

Christina Aguilera: Fighter. Oh yes. This song is actually one of my favorites of all time. It has a positive impact on me whether I’m playing it when I’m happy or sad. You know that a song is great when it has the ability to do that. The music video is gorgeous, and XTina’s vocals are never better on this track.

Dexy’s Midnight Runners: Come On Eileen. Nothing says “cheer up” more than a classic 80’s one hit wonder. Fun fact, this song was named the top one hit wonder of the 80’s by vh1! Whenever I hear this song, I wanna put on a pair of overalls and a straw hat and line dance the day away. I dare you to not sing the falsetto hollering of “come on Eileen!” whenever it happens in the song. It’s a must.

So there you have it, ten of the many songs that hype me up. These tunes are sure fire ways to put a smile on my face. What are your favorite positive anthems? What should I add to my playlist? Leave me a comment and let’s chat! -Sarah

Oct26

Lil Red Recommends! Part 3

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Lil Red Recommends! Part 3

Recommendations one through ten from yours truly ❤ :

1) Read The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry. If you read my article about this book, you’ll already know how much I love it. I just finished rereading this novel by Rachel Joyce today and it still made me cry just as much as when I read it the first time. I’m really looking forward to reading Rachel Joyce’s other book, Perfect. So be on the look out for my thoughts on that once I start reading it!

perf

2) Go on a hike by yourself. Seriously this may be one of the best things you ever do for yourself. If you read my article An Ohio Hike, you’ll know that I had an absolutely lovely solo hiking experience this past week. I felt so at peace when I was walking through the forest with just me, myself, and I. Hearing the sounds of nature and being alone with my own thoughts was so calming. Walking through the beautiful Ohio Metroparks is definitely something I’d like to continue doing.

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3) Write a letter to yourself. I know, I know, so corny right? Contrary to popular belief – it’s not. One of my first college assignments this past week was to write a letter to my future self. My professor promised all of her students that she wouldn’t be reading our letters, just simply mailing them back to us when she felt the time was right. Our only guideline for the assignment was to be kind to ourselves. With that in mind, I wrote a letter straight from the heart to my future self. I wrote all of the positive affirmations I tell myself and then some and it felt so good. Seeing the words I speak to myself in my head on paper made phrases like “you’re beautiful inside and out” very real to me. If that makes sense? If you’d like to read exactly what I wrote to myself, you can check out my article Letter to Myself. Once you complete your letter, tuck it away somewhere special and whenever you need reassurance or positivity, it will be there for you.

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4) Listen to Mika!!!! This lovely gentleman is one of my biggest guilty pleasures. I was playing him on my way home from work yesterday night and had a blast. I completely forgot how much I enjoy his gorgeous vocals and insane falsetto. This is a true story, I discovered Mika years ago when they used his track We Are Golden in a Degrassi commercial on TeenNick. I loved the song so much that I had to hear more. Screaming “we are not what you think we are, we are golden, we are golden” in my car with the windows down last night was exactly what I needed after a day at work! Mika’s talent is so pure and impressive and I can’t get enough of it.

5) Check out the bands Fallen Captive and Below The Tide: Two of the fantastic gentlemen who work at Odd Fellows Tattoos in Akron (where I got my latest tattoo done) are also members of some pretty cool heavy metal bands. Travis Lamont who did my gorgeous Isis piece this weekend plays a mean guitar for Below The Tide while Mitch Pivarski of Fallen Captive lays down some insane vocals. Help support Akron Ohio’s local music scene by showing these guys some love! These gents are two of the best guys you’ll ever meet, and I’m so glad to have the pleasure of knowing them!

6) While you’re at it, give Odd Fellows Tattoos a like: I had the pleasure of getting my latest ink addition done here, and the experience was nothing but positive. You can read all about it in my latest article Body Mods! Part 2. This shop is inhabited by fantastic tattoo artists, piercers, and the all around coolest guys ever. Please show the Akron body art scene some love by giving their Facebook page a like. Make sure you browse through all of the photos of the amazing work that gets done there on the daily. And in case you haven’t seen my newest tattoo yet, here’s a pic of the goddess Isis, done by Travis Lamont, as well as their Facebook page.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Odd-Fellows-Tattoo/667458826660986

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7) Pamper yourself: A few nights ago I took the most amazing bubble bath ever. I lit some fall scented candles in the bathroom, played the gorgeous Amy Winehouse on my iPod, and filled up the tub with some floral scented suds. This sounds like such an obvious thing to do, but sometimes we forget to give ourselves a little treat. I didn’t realize how tense I was from the days work until I sunk into the steaming water. Amy Winehouse is one of the best artists to play while taking a bubble bath – she makes everything so much more luxurious! Enya is also a highly recommended bath time artist as well! After I got out of the tub, I wrapped myself in a fluffy new towel to dry off. As an extra treat I lathered on some Satsuma body butter from The Body Shop. My skin was soft as a baby’s bottom after that! BTW, I believe all of The Body Shop’s bath and body care is half off right now on their website, so take a look if you’re interested! http://www.thebodyshop-usa.com/

8) Listen to Say Hi (formerly known as Say Hi To Your Mom): I absolute adore Mr. Eric Elbogen of Say Hi. I’ve been a fan of this one man band for quite some time now, but have been listening to him very frequently as of late. I can’t get enough of the quirky lyrics of this Seattle native. From the haunting lullaby like tune of “I Think I’ll be a Good Ghost” to making a morbid lyric like “I’m gonna drink your blood” in “Blah Blah Blah” sound romantic – this guy can do no wrong. I stumbled upon this artist when he was still Say Hi To Your Mom. I was strolling through the CD section of Best Buy with my brother, when I pointed out the funny name of Eric Elbogen’s act and we shared a laugh. Once I got home, I was curious about what the music of Say Hi To Your Mom sounded like, so I looked it up, and the rest is history.

9) Do a Halloween activity: This Friday night my sister, her boyfriend, and myself went to The Haunted Schoolhouse and Laboratory in Akron. We had a blast! We only went through the Laboratory because we didn’t feel like paying for both houses. Both haunted houses boast four floors of fright. There were a lot of really cool rooms in the Laboratory, like an operating room, a room inspired by the Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and a dentists office. The timing of the actors in the haunted house was so perfect. They would pop out right when we were more than half way through a room with the thought that we wouldn’t get a scare. It was like they were reading our minds, because as soon as we thought we were smooth sailing, out would come a masked man yielding a chainsaw! It was so fun holding on to each other and laughing every time one of the actors got us! I would love to go to the Haunted Schoolhouse before the Halloween season is over! I would also like to hear about popular haunted houses in your neck of the woods, so please leave me a comment about them!

http://www.hauntedlab.net/

10) Take a shopping trip: Today my mom and I went to TJMaxx to browse their fall and winter clothing. If you guys follow all of my OOTD’s, then you already know how much I love TJ’s! Unfortunately, there was nothing too impressive on our trip today, but it was still so fun to go with my mom and point out our likes and dislikes. It’s always a hit or miss when we make a TJ’s trip, so hopefully next time we go there will be tons of cute and new stuff! I can’t recommend going to one of your favorite stores for a little pick me up enough. In the words of Donna and Tom from Parks and Recreation: TREAT YOSELF!

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So there you have it, my Lil Red Recommends for the week! What’s your favorite Halloween activity to do? I’d really like to get in some more Halloween fun before the week is up! Please leave me a comment if you have any suggestions! Have a great night! -Sarah

Oct21

My Drives to Cleveland

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My Drives to Cleveland

Two to three days during the week, I have to make my way up to Cleveland for my classes at Tri-C. The drive usually isn’t that bad…except for rush hour morning traffic. What usually is a half hour drive from Cuyahoga Falls to Tri-C doubles into an hour in the blink of an eye. These past few days have been particularly rough, because not only is everyone and their brother driving to work at eight o’clock in the morning, but it’s been extremely rainy, AND there’s construction happening to top it all off. So after reading all of these things working against me on good ol’ Route 8, you’re going to think I’m crazy when I let you guys know that I actually really enjoy my drives to school and back. The number one reason why my trek to C-Town is tolerable is because I can finish entire albums of music in my travel time. It’s awesome. On a usual drive for me to work or running errands around Akron I can only get through about four or so songs on any given album. The fact that on my way to school I can hype myself up with an hours worth of music instantly makes for a good day. When I have my favorite bands playing in my car (AKA: The Little Red Love Machine), all of the stressful obstacles on my route to class disappear. Being stuck in traffic that’s moving one MPH turns into a one woman dance party/karaoke club in an instant. Stupid highway drivers who need to get off the road immediately are forgotten once I turn on a good jam. You guys must think that this is a silly post and that everyone knows that music can change the mood of an annoying drive. But I never really experienced this first hand until my drives to school, because I never really needed to go an hour or so out of my way before. Everything and everyone that I drive to is a half hour away or less. During these drives I’ve been enjoying albums such as:

  • The Ting Tings: We Started Nothing (This is the ultimate girl power, woman on the go driving music! Love it.)

  • Cold War Kids: Robbers & Cowards (Nothing hypes me up more than some CWK. Trying to match the lead singers gorgeous vocals is always an enjoyable driving game 😉 )

  • The Used: The Used (This self titled album satisfies all of my road rage needs.)

  • Twenty One Pilots: Vessel (If you read my blog post about these guys, you’ll already know my deep love for them. This album is the perfect throw back your thermos of coffee and wake up music.)

  • Bear Hands: Distraction (I was playing this today and it was fantastic. I love these guys so much! Shout out to PacSun for introducing me to them 😉 )

The albums listed above are just to name a few of what I’ve been jamming to lately! What’s on everyone’s driving play lists? What song gets you pumped for your day while you’re in the car? Do you have any suggestions for me to listen to? Leave me a comment and let’s chat! -Sarah

Oct14

A music dream come true! Part 2!!!

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A music dream come true! Part 2!!!

So as many of you know, I love AFI. And if you’ve read my post A music dream come true, you’ll know that I’m seeing them in concert in Pittsburgh. AND THAT HAPPENS TO BE TODAY!!!!! Words can’t even begin to express how excited I am. I’ve been longing to see them in concert since I discovered AFI almost ten years ago. I’ve never been to a real punk concert before – like in an actual stadium with mosh pits and swarms of emo kids so I’m very much looking forward to this experience! One of the first albums I bought was Sing the Sorrow, so I’m really hoping they’ll play a lot from that album. One of my all time favorite AFI songs and songs in general happens to be Silver and Cold off of that album. I remember hearing it at eleven years old and thinking it was the most beautiful thing in the world. Here I am at twenty, and I still feel the exact same way.

There’s something so special about getting to experience one of your favorite bands live. I’ll never forget seeing U2 live in Pittsburgh two years ago with my family. That was a show for the ages and one of my most treasured memories. I cried so much during that concert, but they were happy tears. I can guarantee you guys that I’ll be crying a lot during the show tonight. I’m sure they’ll be tears of pure joy though! I’m just so excited to hear all of the songs that I’ve felt like were written specifically for me live. AFI’s music has made me feel like they flipped through the pages of my journals and wrote albums upon albums about my struggles. I think that’s why I love them so much. They understand the darkness of life and they understand pain. You would think that hearing that type of music would make me feel upset – but it does quite the opposite. It makes me feel like I’m not alone. It makes me feel like I’m understood. And that is so, so beautiful to me.

I can’t wait to tell all of you guys about the concert! Also, please send good vibes my way, as there’s a pretty bad storm passing through the area that my sister and I will be driving through. Have a fantastic day – I know I will!!!! -Sarah

Oct11

Arcade Fire – Neon Bible

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Arcade Fire – Neon Bible

If there’s one album by Arcade Fire that I don’t think gets enough credit, it would have to be Neon Bible. This album is severely under rated. Funeral was such a beloved album by Arcade Fire so of course it would be difficult to follow up on that – but I think the band succeeded in making a successor that was completely fresh and unique. The most intriguing part of this album to me is that each song tells a different story through their use of reoccurring themes, such as imagery of the ocean (Black Mirror, Ocean of Noise), television, (Antichrist Television Blues, Windowsill,) and the feeling of a post-apocalyptic world after 9/11 (Intervention, Antichrist Television Blues, Black Wave/Bad Vibrations). The songs on Neon Bible were so uniquely composed with less common instruments like the pipe organ, hurdy gurdy, accordion, and mandolin which helped put a sound to the feeling of dread and dissonance that most of the lyrics held. I find that a lot of people forget that there’s a lot of fan favorites on Neon Bible like My Body Is A Cage, Keep The Car Running, and Intervention. My Body Is A Cage has always been one of my all time favorites, so make sure you take a listen.

Funeral was an album that made me feel hopeful and uplifted, as I’m sure it did to many other listeners. It was definitely a nice change of pace for their second album to take a darker turn. I think that’s why I really enjoy Neon Bible as much as I do, because I’m always drawn to the dark and slightly depressing. (ha!) There’s no denying Arcade Fire’s obvious talent either. Even people who don’t care for their music will admit that their sound is impressive. Win Butler’s vocals, as usual are amazing on Neon Bible. His wife, Regine Chassagne also improved leaps and bounds vocally on this album. Her sweet voice on Black Wave/Bad Vibrations is a nice change from the slightly squeaky vocals we’ve heard on Funeral’s “In The Backseat” as well as “I’m Sleeping In A Submarine” from their self titled EP. And of course, the rest of the band deserves a lot of recognition as well – their playing as a seven person band is honestly just as pleasing as hearing an orchestra play.

One final song on Neon Bible, that was also featured on their EP that holds a special place in my heart is No Cars Go.

When I was younger, I figure skated competitively. Even then I was an Arcade Fire fan and chose to skate one of my routines to the instrumental parts of No Cars Go. That was always one of my favorite programs to perform, because it was to one of my favorite bands. And oh look, here’s my cute little 12 year old self at a competition I was in!

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So there you have it! What album by Arcade Fire is your favorite? What’s your favorite all time song by them? Leave me a comment and let’s chat! -Sarah

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Oct11

Wowee Wow Wow!

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Wowee Wow Wow!

Over 50 followers?!!!! Thanks guys! This basically sums up how I feel:

Thanks Pharrell. I’m going on my one month bloggiversary on the 12th, and I feel like 53 followers is a very healthy place to be at for only having lifewithlilred up for a month! I’ll tell ya guys, this past month has been an absolute doozy. I was at a pretty hardcore rock bottom when I started my page (which I’ll go into more detail about when the time is right). But now I feel on top of the world with all of the exciting changes that are happening, like my new job and going off to college! I feel like I had a sky rocket moment after things were going so shitty and it was really awesome to feel like things were finally going my way and falling into place. I’ll be honest with you though, my pessimistic side has been poking its ugly head out lately and it’s making me a bit anxious. I have this awful mentality that all of the great stuff that’s been happening is too good to be true. I know that I shouldn’t be thinking that way, but it’s so hard not to. I feel like any day now things are just going to plummet back to rock bottom again. Does anyone have any pointers on how to block out this negativity? If so, pleease leave me a comment! God knows I need it! However, this rising anxiety doesn’t take away from the fact that I’m proud of myself. These new adventures like my job at Next and attending school weren’t just handed to me. I worked hard for both of them, and I did it all by myself. There’s a really great sense of accomplishment to know that I made a game plan and I followed through and made it happen. I wanted a fresh new change of pace and I got it. I should be focusing on that and I should only be feeling positivity right now – but that’s easier said than done, I suppose!

Btw, I’ve been OBSESSED with the song “Pools” by Glass Animals, so make sure you check it out and let me know what ya think!

Does anyone have any tips on how they control their anxiety? What are some positive mantras that you like to tell yourself? Leave me a comment and let’s chat! Goodnight! -Sarah

Oct4

My Music ABC’s

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My Music ABC’s

So I thought it would be fun to give you guys my music ABC’s once a month or so. I always get complimented on my taste in music, so why not share it with the world? Here’s the ABC lowdown on the bands I’ve been really diggin’ lately.

A- Alt-J (These guys rule! Check out Tessellate, it’s a goodin’!)

B- Bear Hands (Bone Digger off of their latest album Distraction is fantastic.)

C- Cage (for all your angsty rap needs!)

D- Dan Croll (This kid can CROON!!!!)

E- Electric Guest (Call me a little grown up 😉 )

F- Funeral Party (New York City loves to mess around with the LA sound, the LA sound! I dare you to not get this hook stuck in your head!)

G- Grouplove (I adore these guys. Such a talented group.)

H- Haim (SO GOOD!!!! Their debut album Days Are Gone is a home run. Fantastic all around. Total girl power group to the max.)

I- Icona Pop (I’m obsessed with the song Sun Goes Down off of their EP, Iconic.)

J- Jack White (Naturally he’s in my Music ABC’s. I love Jack White to death, and I will have his pale children. COUNT ON IT!)

K- k-os (I’ve mentioned this fellow before, and I urge all of you to give him a try. He absolutely annihilates every genre he dabbles in. From rap, to soul, to R&B, and everything in between. Amazing.)

L- Los Campesinos! (It’s been so fun watching and hearing this band mature over the years. They’re quirky and cool. Really listen to their songs when you listen to them, because there’s a lot of sharp wit and wordplay in their lyrics.)

M- MAGIC! (Rude is my guilty pleasure song, WHAT OF IT?!)

N- Nicki Minaj (Judge me for getting down to some Nicki, it’s cool. Her songs are hit or miss, but when she does hit, she goes hard. Roman’s Revenge is one of my all time favorites, no doubt.)

O- OneRepublic (I really REALLY like these guys. It’s nice to have a band out on popular radio land whose lyrics actually mean something. And what talent. The lead singers voice is gorgeous.)

P- Pharrell (That Pharrell is SO hot right now. *Zoolander reference* But anyways, I love me some Pharrell and I’ve loved Pharrell for a very long time, from his N.E.R.D days and beyond. His recognition is much deserved.)

Q- Queen (I’ve been in a big Queen phase as of late. It’s really amazing to pick out modern bands who are so clearly influenced from Queen’s sound decades before their time. That’s how you know a band is talented. When their music touches musicians for generations.)

R- Ra Ra Riot (YES! I love these guys. Such a soothing sound with some really sweet lyrics to match. Too Too Too Fast is my all time fave.)

S- Santigold (Miss girl can spit! She has so much attitude and swag it’s literally palpable in her music. Her flow is spectacular and she has a great voice without autotune. Check out Your Voice if you don’t believe me!)

T- Tanlines (These guys are beachy fun. While working at PacSun we played basically their entire album Mixed Emotions and it was a joy. Their tribal beats and distinctive vocalization made them really easy to pick out in the Pac playlist. I really enjoy Lost Somewhere. When the gentleman duo begin harmonizing with each other, magic is made.)

U- The Used (I’ve been in quite a big emo-punk phase lately to prep for the AFI concert in Pittsburgh that I’ll be attending in less than two weeks!!! The Used have been around for quite some time now, and they really do just get better with age. Props to them for keeping the angst alive in all of their albums!)

V- The Vines (Since I was about ten years old, I’ve loved The Vines. I’ve had the biggest crush on Craig Nicholls for half of my life now, and I’m so okay with that. Their alt-garage sound has set stepping stones for so many bands of our day such as Jet, The Hives, Wolfmother, and Cage the Elephant, just to name a few.)

W- The White Stripes (I’m forever in a White Stripes phase, and that will NEVER change. Elephant was one of the first albums I ever bought, and it instilled a deep respect for all music in me. It also instilled a never dying crush for Jack White, and I’m not complaining one bit.)

X- The XX (Crystalised is a CLASSIC and I dare you to disagree!)

Y- Yelawolf (I LOOOOOOVE me some Yelawolf, oh yes I do. 1) He’s drop dead GORGEOUS. 2) His flow is INSANE. Dude can spit a mile a minute and I love every minute of it!)

Z- Zedd (One of my dear friends has been trying to get me into bass dropping DJ, Zedd lately. Though the house/heavy electronica music isn’t usually my scene, I can definitely appreciate Zedd’s style, and there’s no denying his talent.)

So there you have it, my Music ABC’s. This was SO fun to make, and I hope you enjoy it just as much as I did. What bands would you include in your music ABC’s? Do you like some of the bands I mentioned above? Leave me a comment and let’s chat! Happy Saturday! -Sarah

Oct4

Frog Eyes

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Frog Eyes

Many people have asked me “Sarah, what are some of your favorite albums?” and I always mention Frog Eyes’ Tears of the Valedictorian. What a tremendous album. What a tremendous sound. What a talented band. Tears runs barely over thirty five minutes, but that’s all they needed to give us nine great songs that each tell a story. Cary Mercer’s vocals truly make the album, they are just gorgeous. What he does with his voice is unmatched by probably anyone in the indie music industry, aside from former band mate Spencer Krug of Sunset Rubdown and Wolf Parade, and perhaps Issac Brock of Modest Mouse. Honestly, to truly understand what I’m talking about when I say that his vocal ability is unreal, one would have to listen to the album. Or at least take a listen to one of my favorite songs of all time, Bushels. I promise you, this will be the best nine minute musical experience of your life:

Good lord. Talk about vocal range, huh? Tears also provides other fan favorites such as Reform the Countryside, “Stockades”, and Caravan Breakers, They Prey On the Weak and the Old. The album opens up with the short and sweet Idle Songs to set the tone of the next half hour, then delivers punch after punch until the very end with the even shorter and still sweet My Boats They Go to bring Tears to a close. One of the reasons why I love Tears of the Valedictorian so very much is because it’s unlike anything I’ve ever heard before. Mercer introduces such unique sounds throughout the album, from the animal chanting in Bushels to the full length crescendo of Evil Energy, The Ill Twin Of…

An interesting thing about Frog Eyes in the amount of influential musicians in the indie world that have come and gone as band mates. These name drops include:

  • Ryan Beattie of The Himalayan Bear
  • Dante DeCaro of Hot Hot Heat and Wolf Parade
  • Megan Boddy of Chet
  • Matt Skillings – head engineer for Japandroids

The musicians named above are just a few members past and present of the Frog Eyes crew. Because of the number of band mates walking in and out of the band, Frog Eyes is associated quite frequently with other indie fan favorites such as Destroyer, The New Pornographers, Swan Lake, Wolf Parade, and Sunset Rubdown. (The last two listed are two of my other all time favorite bands!) For your enjoyment, here’s Caravan Breakers, They Prey On the Weak and the Old. Please indulge:

tears

If you’d like to hear the rest of the album, all of the videos should be on Youtube! Where are all of my Frog Eyes fans at? What are some of your favorite indie bands? What’s your favorite album? Leave me a comment and let’s chat! -Sarah

Oct3

Bombay Bicycle Club

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Bombay Bicycle Club

So I’ve always been quite a big fan of Bombay Bicycle Club, and I’ve been listening to their latest album So Long, See You Tomorrow a lot recently. While working at PacSun we played at least half of this album through out the day, and I would always get so hyped when I would hear them. BBC plays with a lot of different sounds on this album, vastly different than any of their previous music. There’s clear influences of Bollywood on my personal favorite “Feel” and a great attempt at electronica on their first single off of the album “Carry Me”. The Bollywood influences came from lead singer, Jack Steadman’s travels to India and Turkey, and it really is a fantastic effort. I’ve always classified Bombay Bicycle Club as strictly indie rock, however, So Long, See You Tomorrow has made me think otherwise. Previous albums like Flaws and A Different Kind Of Fix stayed in a pretty safe zone of a mellow sound with some occasional indie pop thrown in. So Long, threw all of their previous safety blanket songs out the window with some heavy hitters like Overdone, Home By Now, and Luna. It’s really cool to hear BBC give themselves fully to a cool indie/electronica hybrid sound on quite a few songs off of this album. Hearing Jack Steadman’s lovely human vocals over unique robot-beats makes for a completely unique sound. Bombay Bicycle Club is more to me than just a typical indie band, now that they’ve proven themselves with different genres of electronica, Bollywood, and indie-pop – I mean honestly, tell me you can’t picture their ballad-esque It’s Alright Now on the radio – I dare you. Clear influences of pop music have made the general sound off of So Long, See You Tomorrow much more attainable and crowd pleasing. And let me tell you, this member of the crowd is pleased. Do yourselves a favor and check out their official video for Carry Me. The concept is awesome and the animation is sweet!

All in all, I rate So Long, See You Tomorrow at a healthy 7.4. Where are all my Bombay Bicycle Club fans at? How do you feel about this album? What’s your favorite BBC song? Leave me a comment and let’s chat! -Sarah