This week, I offer one of my all-time favourite tracks:
'Always Attract' is a track by You Me At Six from their debut album 'Take Off Your Colours' (released in 2008).
Previously on this blog I have sited You Me At Six as one of my three must-have bands and this is definitely a song which also deserves a mention.
What I love about it is the guitar melodies and the strong harmonies with their guest female singer who happens to be none other than Elissa Franceschi, sister to lead singer, Josh Franceschi.
If you're a fan of songs which build up the suspense right until the end, this is definitely one worth a listen.
Seriously one of the most underrated songs on this album.
Have a listen:
http://www.last.fm/music/You+Me+At+Six/_/Always+Attract
Showing posts with label WW: Wildcard Wednesdays. Show all posts
Showing posts with label WW: Wildcard Wednesdays. Show all posts
Wednesday, 17 November 2010
Wednesday, 10 November 2010
WW: Joe Brooks
Joe Brooks is a singer/songwriter from Southampton, UK.
He is an artist who gathered his initial following from Myspace after being inspired to learn the guitar at age 16. His page receives some of the highest amounts of hits on Myspace, with his single 'Superman' outplaying bands such as Oasis.
Now 23, Joe Brooks has just released his debut album 'Constellation Me' this September.
I found it hard to categorise him as I would say if you like acoustic, you'll definitely like him and if you like indie, you probably like him as he would be in the more indie-alternative-acoustic category (if that's even a category).
His music speaks for itself though. It's easy going, lighthearted music that reminds me of the summer, perfect for lazy days, his voice neither too weak or too overwhelming.
Personal favourites would include 'Superman','Hello Mr. Sun' and 'Five Days of Summer'.
Having spent the past year or so on tour in the US and completing his album in L.A., he is back in the UK for his home tour this winter. So if you like the sound of him, it might be worth grabbing yourself a ticket...I know I'll be trying.
http://www.myspace.com/joebrooksmusic
http://www.last.fm/music/Joe%2520Brooks?ac=joe%20broo
http://www.cambio.com/shows/cambio-music/cambio-music-with-joe-brooks
Enjoy.
He is an artist who gathered his initial following from Myspace after being inspired to learn the guitar at age 16. His page receives some of the highest amounts of hits on Myspace, with his single 'Superman' outplaying bands such as Oasis.
Now 23, Joe Brooks has just released his debut album 'Constellation Me' this September.
I found it hard to categorise him as I would say if you like acoustic, you'll definitely like him and if you like indie, you probably like him as he would be in the more indie-alternative-acoustic category (if that's even a category).
His music speaks for itself though. It's easy going, lighthearted music that reminds me of the summer, perfect for lazy days, his voice neither too weak or too overwhelming.
Personal favourites would include 'Superman','Hello Mr. Sun' and 'Five Days of Summer'.
Having spent the past year or so on tour in the US and completing his album in L.A., he is back in the UK for his home tour this winter. So if you like the sound of him, it might be worth grabbing yourself a ticket...I know I'll be trying.
http://www.myspace.com/joebrooksmusic
http://www.last.fm/music/Joe%2520Brooks?ac=joe%20broo
http://www.cambio.com/shows/cambio-music/cambio-music-with-joe-brooks
Enjoy.
Wednesday, 27 October 2010
WW: Intuition
This weeks WW is in fact a current favourite, perfect for early mornings and days where you feel totally unmotivated and uninspired.
'Intuition' by Selena Gomez & The Scene (featuring Eric Bellinger) has got the perfect amount of catchy melodies and lyrics with upbeat rhythm and just a general motivating feeling...must be the electro-beat/ techno-pop working its magic.
The song is from her second studio album 'A Year Without Rain' which became available in the UK at the beginning of this month. A sample can be heard from her website:
http://www.selenagomez.com/release/36351/view
If you're in need of something different to lighten the mood, I would definitely recommend this.
Enjoy...leave your thoughts...
'Intuition' by Selena Gomez & The Scene (featuring Eric Bellinger) has got the perfect amount of catchy melodies and lyrics with upbeat rhythm and just a general motivating feeling...must be the electro-beat/ techno-pop working its magic.
The song is from her second studio album 'A Year Without Rain' which became available in the UK at the beginning of this month. A sample can be heard from her website:
http://www.selenagomez.com/release/36351/view
If you're in need of something different to lighten the mood, I would definitely recommend this.
Enjoy...leave your thoughts...
Wednesday, 6 October 2010
WW: Mumford Madness
Mumford & Sons, the four piece band are part of the now seemingly expanding genre dubbed as 'Nu-Folk'. But before you conjure too strong an image into your mind, it's not really what you would expect.
You're sure to have heard of them if you're a festival-goer or even a lover of country, bluegrass or folk music. They along with Laura Marling, Marcus Foster etc make up the genre of 'nu-folk'.
Their first huge performance was Glastonbury in 2008 and the release of their album in October 2009, the band has been gaining popularity ever since, most recently seen in the rise of the album in the No. 1 download position in the iTunes store and even their single 'Little Lion Man' in the top 10.
The band have the perfect mix of sounds, achieved by their strong lead singer, Marcus Mumford's raw voice blended with the tight harmonies of his fellow band mates and the addition of a banjo and various other folk sounds which pleasantly makes for something great for your ears.
[Yes, while banjos may not be the obvious choice for all bands out there, the instrument itself has gained much popularity since 2008 for music-making.]
But it doesn't stop there. Mumford & Sons are set apart by their use of such a variety of influences...apart from their contemporaries as well as country and western folk music, the band have influences from the eastern hemisphere such as Indian folk music which is prominent on the clips of their song 'To Darkness' found on their Myspace page:
http://www.myspace.com/mumfordandsons
The band seek to keep exploring the boundaries of their genre, making for an exiting and refreshing change to the mainstream music found today. Definitely a favourite.
You're sure to have heard of them if you're a festival-goer or even a lover of country, bluegrass or folk music. They along with Laura Marling, Marcus Foster etc make up the genre of 'nu-folk'.
Their first huge performance was Glastonbury in 2008 and the release of their album in October 2009, the band has been gaining popularity ever since, most recently seen in the rise of the album in the No. 1 download position in the iTunes store and even their single 'Little Lion Man' in the top 10.
The band have the perfect mix of sounds, achieved by their strong lead singer, Marcus Mumford's raw voice blended with the tight harmonies of his fellow band mates and the addition of a banjo and various other folk sounds which pleasantly makes for something great for your ears.
[Yes, while banjos may not be the obvious choice for all bands out there, the instrument itself has gained much popularity since 2008 for music-making.]
But it doesn't stop there. Mumford & Sons are set apart by their use of such a variety of influences...apart from their contemporaries as well as country and western folk music, the band have influences from the eastern hemisphere such as Indian folk music which is prominent on the clips of their song 'To Darkness' found on their Myspace page:
http://www.myspace.com/mumfordandsons
The band seek to keep exploring the boundaries of their genre, making for an exiting and refreshing change to the mainstream music found today. Definitely a favourite.
Wednesday, 22 September 2010
WW Catchup: VMA recap
OK so I know I missed a Wednesday, so attempts to regularise posts can already be classed as fail.
I thought instead I'd just write about the performances at the VMA's which were over a week ago, but I only got a chance to watch the full thing this week.
'The Video Music Awards' are probably one of the biggest music awards around (bar a few exceptions).
It's always an interesting show and I thought this one didn't disappoint.
There were quite a lot of excellent videos up for nominations and apart from Lady Gaga's 8 out of 13 wins, the rest were pretty hard to call. What everyone was most looking forward to was obviously the return of Kanye West.
As we all know, after last year's VMA incident, he has been keeping a pretty low profile. But he was back with the honour of ending the show. Both he and Taylor Swift performed songs from their new records and predictably were about the incident. I was quite intrigued to see how this would play out....and it was quite surprising actually.
I thought it would be really cringe-worthy to watch, but both songs (I thought) were pretty good (and definitely listenable), in fact some have even gone as far to say that Kanye's song was his 'best single yet'.
While Taylor's song 'Innocent' was probably more obviously based on the incident, apart from a few lines ('32 and still growing up now') it was a surprisingly subtle approach from an artist who is known to in effect 'name-and shame' her 'enemies'.
Kanye's song 'Runaway' seemed to be more about the mistakes throughout his life with an apologetic tone and he didn't disappoint as the final performance really made the end of the show.
If we're honest, it's hard to know whether that was the end of all that drama and a sceptic would say it's all about publicity (which I don't deny).
Taylor got her apology and Kanye got his career back. Publicity stunt or not....Either way it's a win-win ...right?
[Performances are only viewable from the MTV website if you live in the US.]
[Taylor Swift's song 'Innocent' will be on her latest album 'Speak Now' which will be released onto iTunes (UK) next month.]
[Kanye West's single 'Runaway' is available to the US in a week, UK release set for November]
I thought instead I'd just write about the performances at the VMA's which were over a week ago, but I only got a chance to watch the full thing this week.
'The Video Music Awards' are probably one of the biggest music awards around (bar a few exceptions).
It's always an interesting show and I thought this one didn't disappoint.
There were quite a lot of excellent videos up for nominations and apart from Lady Gaga's 8 out of 13 wins, the rest were pretty hard to call. What everyone was most looking forward to was obviously the return of Kanye West.
As we all know, after last year's VMA incident, he has been keeping a pretty low profile. But he was back with the honour of ending the show. Both he and Taylor Swift performed songs from their new records and predictably were about the incident. I was quite intrigued to see how this would play out....and it was quite surprising actually.
I thought it would be really cringe-worthy to watch, but both songs (I thought) were pretty good (and definitely listenable), in fact some have even gone as far to say that Kanye's song was his 'best single yet'.
While Taylor's song 'Innocent' was probably more obviously based on the incident, apart from a few lines ('32 and still growing up now') it was a surprisingly subtle approach from an artist who is known to in effect 'name-and shame' her 'enemies'.
Kanye's song 'Runaway' seemed to be more about the mistakes throughout his life with an apologetic tone and he didn't disappoint as the final performance really made the end of the show.
If we're honest, it's hard to know whether that was the end of all that drama and a sceptic would say it's all about publicity (which I don't deny).
Taylor got her apology and Kanye got his career back. Publicity stunt or not....Either way it's a win-win ...right?
[Performances are only viewable from the MTV website if you live in the US.]
[Taylor Swift's song 'Innocent' will be on her latest album 'Speak Now' which will be released onto iTunes (UK) next month.]
[Kanye West's single 'Runaway' is available to the US in a week, UK release set for November]
Wednesday, 8 September 2010
WW: Not Like The Movies
Ok, so cutting it close, but you know, it's just about still Wednesday here in the UK... (not that anyone really cares)
But moving on...
This week's WW is from the newly released album (well newly released here in the UK) 'Teenage Dream' by Katy Perry.
Well of course, practically everyone has heard 'Teenage Dream' by now and seen the video as well as for 'California Gurls' (and if you haven't....well no offence... but have you been under a rock?)
However, this song is a total contrast....a slow, sad song that is totally different....think more like 'Thinking of You' and you're along the right lines.
I love everything about this piece, the muted percussion to the lyrics and melody lines.
'Not Like the Movies' is probably one of the most understated songs on the album...but always worth a listen.
http://www.myspace.com/katyperry/music/albums/teenage-dream-16437145
Enjoy.
But moving on...
This week's WW is from the newly released album (well newly released here in the UK) 'Teenage Dream' by Katy Perry.
Well of course, practically everyone has heard 'Teenage Dream' by now and seen the video as well as for 'California Gurls' (and if you haven't....well no offence... but have you been under a rock?)
However, this song is a total contrast....a slow, sad song that is totally different....think more like 'Thinking of You' and you're along the right lines.
I love everything about this piece, the muted percussion to the lyrics and melody lines.
'Not Like the Movies' is probably one of the most understated songs on the album...but always worth a listen.
http://www.myspace.com/katyperry/music/albums/teenage-dream-16437145
Enjoy.
Wednesday, 1 September 2010
WW: Brooklyn
Ironically the first song of WW is by a band called Wakey!Wakey!
Well technically it's a band, but they are mostly known by their frontman, Michael Grubbs.
It's hard to put them into a certain genre....though I guess 'indie' would best describe it?
Anyway, Wakey!Wakey! are the kind of band which you would hear as the soundtrack to 'One Tree Hill' and infact, their song 'War Sweater' was the opening song for the finale of season six.[which for all OTH fans is one of, if not the saddest episode]
Their frontman, Michael Grubbs is actually in OTH season seven as the bartender 'Grubbs' and their music features again in season seven and one of the pieces featured is 'Brooklyn'.
It's one of those dramatic pieces, with big melodic lines and its definitely one of my current favourites.
If you're a fan of big romantic-style piano solos, this is surely worth a listen.
They released their latest album 'Almost Everything I Wish I'd Said The Last Time I Saw You' early this year and it also has some great songs.
http://wakeywakeymusic.com/
http://www.last.fm/music/Wakey%21Wakey%21
Enjoy.
Well technically it's a band, but they are mostly known by their frontman, Michael Grubbs.
It's hard to put them into a certain genre....though I guess 'indie' would best describe it?
Anyway, Wakey!Wakey! are the kind of band which you would hear as the soundtrack to 'One Tree Hill' and infact, their song 'War Sweater' was the opening song for the finale of season six.[which for all OTH fans is one of, if not the saddest episode]
Their frontman, Michael Grubbs is actually in OTH season seven as the bartender 'Grubbs' and their music features again in season seven and one of the pieces featured is 'Brooklyn'.
It's one of those dramatic pieces, with big melodic lines and its definitely one of my current favourites.
If you're a fan of big romantic-style piano solos, this is surely worth a listen.
They released their latest album 'Almost Everything I Wish I'd Said The Last Time I Saw You' early this year and it also has some great songs.
http://wakeywakeymusic.com/
http://www.last.fm/music/Wakey%21Wakey%21
Enjoy.
WW: Wildcard Wednesdays
Ok, so in an attempt to make this blog a little more regular than it is, I decided on the idea of posting a song/band once a week.
So every Wednesday I'll let the 'shuffle' setting on my iTunes decide what music to share.
So yeah. That's all I have to say for the moment...keep you posted.
So every Wednesday I'll let the 'shuffle' setting on my iTunes decide what music to share.
So yeah. That's all I have to say for the moment...keep you posted.
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