Another Pick Of The Week

Now, I know that this may seem like a completely random song selection, but I've just been listening to a certain song, and I'm horrified that I've never blogged about it before. Even better, this band is local, and we all know how important it is to support our fantastic local talent.

Lonehill Estate- Gangstar. Yes, this song isn't exactly new, in fact I heard it for the first time over a year ago, but it is definitely still a winner. Last year, I was on my way to a lecture, listening to 5fm, when I heard a song with the most intriguing lyrics: "She will have a beer, and I think I'll have a milkshake..." Really? The male speaker in the song was volunteering to have a milkshake? Needless to say, I was gripped. Whomever it was that was DJ-ing at the time, said that this song was "Gangstar" by Lonehill Estate. Hold on a second, I knew that name! It was Nathan Ro-who-used-to-be-Jonathan-Ross-who-was-Tim-on-Isidindo's band! Anway, "Gangstar" became a firm favourite amongst my friends and I, and we never cease to squeal a little if we get a reply from the band on Twitter . 

Another discovery from 5fm was "Techno Band", an upbeat track, which could be just as at home on the dancefloor as anywhere else. 

Only a few weeks ago, I a friend played me a song called "Skyward", which I recognised, and was humming along to happily for several minutes, before I realised that it was in fact an older Lonehill Estate song, which I clearly recognised from the amount of airplay it had gotten on the radio quite a few years ago. "Skyward" is an absolutely fantastic song, I must say that I am completely addicted! 

Lonehill Estate's music video for their latest single, 'Daans' should be out shortly, and it's bound to be a hit! 

The Album I'm Overplaying This Week

I'm a music snob. My general attitude is that my taste in music is better than yours, and you should just accept that fact and move on. I am also one of those people that will clap my hands over my ears in horror at the first sign of dance music. However, there are always exceptions to the rule. 

My main issue with dance music is the lyrics: "baby, oh baby, dance with me on the dancefloor baby, and let's take off our clothes baby, on the dancefloor baby baby baby". I mean seriously, some of this stuff makes Rebecca Black seem like she should win a Nobel Prize in literature. I have nothing against music with a good, danceable beat, and I've demonstrated this by really enjoying music by artists such as Locnville, Goldfish and Example (all of whom I've been lucky enough to see live, go me!). 

Anyway, back to the issue at hand; what I am listening to this week. Foster The People. Yes, they are considered a dance/pop band, but they are definitely different to any other dance groups I've ever heard, producing not only a unique sound, but unique lyrics, many of which are slightly dark and edgy. "Pumped Up Kicks", is one such example. As I've said, I am usually one for lyrics, I always know what a song is about, and usually just shake my head when others do not. However, when I first heard this song, I listened to it happily for several weeks, only singing along to the chorus, before I began to wonder what on earth a 'pumped up kick' was, and thus decided to read the lyrics of the song. Oh. It's about guns and shooting, how cheerful. Now I find it absolutely hilarious that people belt out these lyrics without any idea of what they are actually singing! That aside, the song is great, as is the rest of the band's album, 'Torches'. Other favourites from the album include "Warrant", "Waste" and "Don't Stop (Color On The Walls)" This album will definitely be on repeat all week! Oh, and also, I've said it before, but I'll say it again, I think that these guys were absolutely robbed of the MTV VMA for Best New Artist.

Opinions on the VMA's

The end of the year is rapidly approaching, and I guess that means we're about to witness a stream of awards shows, each claiming to decide on the best of the best in world of music over the past year. I'm not a huge fan of awards shows, many of them seem to choose winners based on who the most influential performers are, rather than based on the merits of the actual song in question. (Please understand that these are my personal opinions and that I have nothing against Lady Gaga at all).

I present last night's MTV VMA's as an example of this syndrome. Lady Gaga (dressed as a man, might I add) took home the award for 'best video with a message' for 'Born This Way'. Now, whilst I understand that the message in the song is great and everything, the video depicts Gaga giving birth to a new race, of, well, Gaga's, and I for one find this mildly disturbing at the very least. In my own humble opinion, Pink's 'F***ing Perfect' should have received this award, or even Katy Perry's 'Firework'. 

I am also shocked to the core that the immensely talented Foster The People did not win the award for 'best new artist', which went to someone called Tyler The Creator, whose twitter username is "@fucktyler". Really? 

On a happier note, I must say that I am absolutely thrilled for Beyonce and Jay-Z, who announced that they are expecting a baby! The child is sure to be extremely talented, and may just outdo even the likes of Suri Cruise for Celebville's most adored tot. 

Let's Play A Guessing - Or Wishing- Game

Alright, so Big Concerts announced this morning that Julio Iglesias would be performing a couple of shows in SA  in November. This brings that month's number of international acts up to two: Josh Groban, and good old Julio. Thank Heavens that it's not his son was all that went through my mind when I heard the announcement. 

So basically, my hopes for December concerts have just gone through the roof: after all, December was the month that I saw The Killers. This year, I'm crossing my fingers and hoping for bands such as Paramore, My Chemical Romance and my guilty pleasure, Miss Taylor Swift. I also wouldn't say no to Muse, Owl City, Jason Mraz and about a million others, sigh, the life of a fangirl! 

What I'm Listening To This Week

So, a new week has begun, and with it, tonnes of academic-type stuff to get through, so of course I need something to help me procrastinate. Last.fm has this really cool feature which helps you find artists who are similar to those in your library, and I was creeping around yesterday, when I stumbled upon a band called Hey Monday. They were supposed to be similar to Paramore, so I decided to listen to the first song of their's that I could find, which was called "Candles". A few seconds into said song, my amazing mental Glee-radar started going crazy, and I realized that this was a song which had been performed by Kurt, Blaine and The Warblers. Anyway, it's a really good song, and Hey Monday's album "Hold On Tight" contains some really catchy tunes, such as "Arizona" and 'Homecoming". It has been on repeat since last night, and I've quite a good time jamming around my house to the upbeat vibes of this album. 

My unhealthy obsession with The Gaslight Anthem is still in full force, and seems to be getting worse every single day. After listening to "The '59 Sound" album solidly for a week, I can now say that my favourite tracks are "The '59 Sound", "Even Cowgirls Get The Blues" and "High Lonesome". I haven't been so addicted to a newly discovered band since I first heard "Wonderful Life" by Hurts, almost a year ago. 

The Process of Getting Coldplay Tickets

One fine Friday evening, whilst normal people my age began their weekly binge-drinking session, yours truly sat drinking a cup of tea and creeping the Big Concerts Facebook page. I did this often, but tonight one word that appeared in several posts jumped out at me, as I skimmed through the page: COLDPLAY. I slowed down and re-read the posts, many of which said something along the lines of “are you bringing Coldplay to SA this year?”. I wondered why everyone was suddenly asking this, and my question  was answered seconds later, when I read a post that indicated that Highveld Stereo claimed to be making an announcement about a Major Rock Band that would be coming to SA within the next few months. Hmm. A normal person may have cast this out of their mind, and simply waited for Big Concerts to announce the show, but not me. I think that this is the time when I declare my love for Coldplay. I became absolutely obsessed with them in June of 2008, and I’ve stayed that way ever since. Although I consider The Killers to be my Favourite Band Ever, Coldplay come a close second, I absolutely adore them. I had held no hope that they would ever come to South Africa, and thus earlier in the year I had been at the point of looking up flights to Scotland, as Coldplay were playing at T In The Park music festival, which just happened to fall perfectly within my university holidays… I’d eventually given up on the Scotland plan, getting tickets seemed like an almost impossible task, and so I’d decided that next year I would attend a major overseas festival and see Coldplay.

Anyway, back to that fine Friday evening. I set up a live stream of Highveld Stereo on my laptop, and began to listen out for any mention of the Announcement. I didn’t have to wait long. Soon, the DJ’s began talking about the announcement, which was going to be made on Tuesday. They hinted that it was a British band composed of four men, one of whom being married to a famous blonde. Hmm. This was the first time that I allowed myself to freak out a tad. This was also the time when I sent my mother a message, telling her that Coldplay may be coming. After I’d explained the story, she told me to calm down, not wanting me to get my hopes up in case it wasn’t them at all. This was also around the time that I started messaging Lauren saying things along the lines of “LAUREN, COLDPLAY ADHSHFGUIDGJIOERGJRTKLJG COLDPLAY!!!!!!’. Her first reaction was to ask if I was drunk. By now, I was completely distracted, I’d left my two friends who were at my house to their own devices, while I continued my online creeping, pausing occasionally to whisper “Coldplay” in a voice that must have sounded rather manic. After a long while, I managed to rip myself away from the open tabs of Big Concerts, Coldplay and Highveld Stereo websites, and I went out to enjoy my evening. But I never stopped thinking about the announcement.

The next day, my Highveld stream went on again, and by now the adverts were becoming more and more obvious. My favourite one went something like this: “We’ve seen the best bands in the world…” Human by The Killers plays in the background, cue fangirl scream “..but one has eluded us…until now!” And then Viva La Vida began to play. I literally screamed out loud. Still, however, I would not allow myself to believe that it was really them. Surely they wouldn’t be making it so obvious if it was? Plus, it was Coldplay, I cannot even express how much I wanted it to be them, but it just seemed unreal. The announcement was then going to be moved to Monday anytime from 6am, as opposed to Tuesday. I began to count hours, and became much too distracted to concentrate on work for the rest of the weekend. Now the stress set in, it was all very well that my favourite band might be coming, but I do have commitments to my studies, if the shows were during the week, I wouldn’t be able to go at all, unable to miss lectures of practicals, plus the little issue of exams was ever present.

My alarm was set for 5.55am on Monday morning, I had to be awake in time for the announcement. I even got a message from Lauren at 6.58am: “2 mins til the announcement!”. The actual announcement was anti-climatic- DJ Ryan O’Connor of Highveld’s Cape Town sister station, KFM tweeted “COLDPLAY heading to SA in October.” The dates were Wednesday the 5^th in Cape Town and Saturday the 8^th in Johannesburg. That meant that I would be able to go to the Joburg show, no problem. I had thought that once it was confirmed, I would be jumping up and down and squealing my head off, but I wasn’t. I was completely calm, and texted my mother to tell her the news, then ate breakfast and headed off to my lecture.

My next mission was to convince Lauren that the trip across the country was worth it, as were Golden Circle tickets. This wasn’t very difficult, one play of a live version of ‘The Scientist’ later, we were planning our strategy to acquire tickets. Tickets were to go on sale on Thursday at 9am, and the next worry in our lives was that tickets would sell out before we could get them. Luckily, neither of us had early lectures, so we would be able to queue at the outlet to purchase tickets. Attempting to buy tickets online would have been a bad idea, as the system is known to crash when it becomes overloaded. At 8.20am, I was at the Computicket outlet, and Lauren joined me after a few minutes. We were third in a line which had snaked its way out of the door by 8.55am, and we’re from a tiny town. Later, I gasped in horror at the photographs of the lines in larger towns, and breathed my first and last sigh of relief at the fact that I didn’t live in Cape Town. The people who were first in our line purchased seven tickets for the Cape Town show, the girls second in line bought two seated tickets for Joburg, and then we were up. I had never been so relieved to see the tickets begin to print out of the machine. I checked and double-checked that these were Golden Circle tickets for Johannesburg, and then Lauren and I spent about ten minutes standing in the street outside the shop, screaming. However, I still couldn’t quite get my head around the fact that I was really seeing Coldplay! Upon logging onto Facebook, we saw that Golden Circle tickets for Joburg had already sold out. It was now 9.35am…we had gotten our tickets 20 minutes before they had sold out!

Of course, I talked off the ears of anyone who would listen for the next few days, going on and on about Coldplay and how I was seeing them. I’m sure my friends wished I would shut up, and I’m sure they’ll be wishing the same thing when I return from the concert. My outfit is ready, my flights are booked, I have park-and-ride tickets, I have a place to stay, everything is in place, now bring on the 8^th of October!  

Haal Asem Kwagga Tour In Gtown

Last night, I had the pleasure of attending a live show, yay! Since so few bands grace Grahamstown with their presence, I was definitely excited. The line-up of the Haal Asem Kwagga Tour consisted of Zebra & Giraffe, whom I'd seen twice prviously, and Van Coke Kartel, who I wasn't very familiar with, but I was still excited to see them perform.

Lauren and I went creeping at 7pm, to acquire tickets, after which we left the venue, to be spared the horror of being the only people there. We finally went back for good at around 9.30pm, but still had quite a wait before the first band played. 

The audience for Zebra & Giraffe was small but enthusiastic, and if a band can get students - who are usually apathetic towards not only music, but life in general- headbanging to every song, they must be doing something right! There's no denying that Zebra & Giraffe are a talented band, frontman Greg Carlin is a fantastic vocalist, and the band has a polished, professional sound which could take them far in the music world. I thoroughly enjoyed their set. Afterwards, I forced Lauren to abandon all of her ingrained journalistic professionalism and accompany me to ask Greg for a photo. He obliged willingly, seeming to be impressed that we were both tall enough to stand next to him without looking like midgets.

Greg Carlin of Zebra & Giraffe

Next up were Van Coke Kartel, and seeing I had no idea what to expect, I was pleasantly surprised. This band really knows how to rock out, and their enthusiasm had the entire crowd dancing along, even if not everyone knew all the words to the songs. I couldn't help but smile all the way through their set, it's obvious that these guys love performing, the stage is where they belong!

All in all, I had a great evening, it was definitely R50 well spent. 

Las Vegas' Next Big Thing

'I don't need a fire to keep this spark alive' must be one of the coolest opening lines I've ever heard. As I've said a million times before, lyrics are what really get me hooked on a song, and from the very first time I heard the opening line of "Prometheus" by Most Thieves, I knew that this band was going to be great! 

Being a rather large (cough, understatement of the century, cough) fan of The Killers, I am one of those people who follow all of their touring musicians on Twitter... I quite enjoy watching the Royal Albert Hall DVD and squealing "I follow him on Twitter!" everytime someone speaks during the behind the scenes feature. Thus, when touring percussionist Rob Whited tweeted about having a new band called Most Thieves, I knew I had to check them out. Well, that turned out to be a great life choice! Their tracks such as 'Muscle Memory' and 'The Weight and Sea" are awesome, and this band just knows how to choose the coolest names! I mean, their debut EP is entitled 'Every Mark On Every Map', how fantastic is that? 

The band has recently begun to gain a lot of exposure, even being named "best breakthrough band of 2011" by Vegas Seven magazine, and getting a shining review from Las Vegas CityLife after supporting Ronnie Vannucci's side project Big Talk at a show in Vegas. Fox 5 New Vegas also said that the band could be Vegas's next big thing, and this would not surprise me at all, one listen of 'Prometheus' is enough to have me imagining this song being belted out enthusiastically by huge crowds, sometime in the not-so-distant future.

Most Thieves are currently working on their first full-length album, and I have no doubt that it will take the music world by storm! You can listen to some of their music on their official website, http://mostthieves.com/ , and if you like what you hear, join one of the many street teams, which have popped up on Facebook over the past few months, such as this one just showing how supportive the fans are of this band! 

A Newly Discovered Gem

During one of my twitter creeping session- they're frequent- I saw someone I follow mention a band called 'The Gaslight Anthem'. What an odd name for a band! However, I've recently become much more open-minded towards oddly-named bands, and thus decided to acquire a sample of this band's music, and I was more than pleasantly surprised by what I heard.

One song in particular that really struck me is called "The '59 Sound". It may just have been the name that made me listen to the song in the first place (I'm a huge fan of the '50s, but I will elaborate on that another time), but I've had the song for about 24 hours and it has already been played 11 times. I swear that's more than I played the new Coldplay single the first day I got it! 

"The '59 Sound" is really quite a sad song if one listens to the words properly, it seems to deal with the theme of death, perhaps by car accident. Somehow though, it is not a depressing song, and it is so catchy that I have been singing it all day, probably to the detriment of the formal presentation I gave in class this morning, but oh well! My favourite line goes 'did you hear the '59 sound, coming through on Grandmama's radio...", there I go with that '50s obsession again! 

As I'd never heard of this band before yesterday, I am going to assume that they are very alternative. Their songs are upbeat, and they have quite a distinctive sound, which is rather different to the music I usually listen to, I guess I'm expanding my horizons! Now, before I become Too Indie To Live, I think I'll go listen to some Coldplay for the rest of the night....

Some Of The Best Songs Ever

I feel that I have exhausted my entire music collection, of 5000+ songs, and thus I just found myself creeping the internet, as one does, for new songs. I happened to come across a list of one man's favourite songs of the 2000's... and, well, there were 2000 songs on said list! I found myself wondering if I could name 2000 songs that I loved, but instead, I decided to write a list of 20 songs that I think are great. These are not my 20 favourite songs ever, but they are songs that either I think are beautifully written, or mean something special to me. I tried not to repeat artists too much, otherwise the list would have looked something like this: The Killers, The Killers, The Killers, The Killers, The Killers...

Anyway, here is my list of Songs I Think Are Awesome :

·         A Dustland Fairytale- The Killers

·         The Scientist- Coldplay

·         Bittersweet Symphony- The Verve

·         No Matter What- Boyzone

·         Smooth- Rob Thomas/ Santana

·         My Love- Westlife

·         Wonderful Life- Hurts

·         Bigger Than Us- White Lies

·         Waiting For The End- Linkin Park

·         This River Is Wild- The Killers

·         Jilted Lovers and Broken Hearts- Brandon Flowers

·         Awake and Alive- Skillet

·         Charmer- Kings Of Leon

·         Weeping- Josh Groban

·         September- Daughtry

·         Violet Hill- Coldplay

·         Long Live- Taylor Swift

·         One- Glee Cast Version*

·         The Sun- Maroon 5

·         Wire To Wire- Razorlight

* K*hold it against me if you will, but I can't stand U2, "One" is a fantastic song though, so I listen to the Glee version all the time. 

*

Just A Normal Sunday Playlist

I though I would share some of the music that get's me through the day, almost every single Sunday.

On a Sunday, when I sit alone in my flat, I start to miss home a little bit more than I do at other times of the week. I guess it's because I'm not at lectures, and I'm not trying to make up the sleep that I missed the night before. Thus, I open my itunes, and attempt to make myself feel better, and somehow I always end up listening to the same genre: country. Well, I blame my grandparents for this one. Weekends spent at their house consisted of a constant loop of Pasty Cline, Johnny Cash, and Kris Kristofferson, amongst others, and I guess that's what made these oldies classics remind me of home. In between "Your Cheatin' Heart", "Sunday Morning Coming Down" and "Help Me Make It Through The Night", I've added some Carrie Underwood, Faith Hill, and Lonestar to make my Sunday playlist a bit more modern. These catchy songs of heartbreak and lost love somehow manage to cheer me up even on the darkest of days, so go ahead, think I'm odd, I'll just be sitting in the sun, humming along to "Hillbilly Rock, Hillbilly Roll", and life will be perfect, at least for a few minutes...

Being Excited For A Concert I'm Not Going To

Big ups to Big Concerts for organising an international act almost every single month this year! U2, Neil Diamond, Roxette, The Script, James Blunt, Coldplay, Kings Of Leon, and now Josh Groban have or will have all graced our shores by the end of 2011. 

Though I may not be the biggest fan of all of these acts, I still think it's great exposure for the country, and promotes the fact that yes, we are able to handle huge shows such as the U2 360 Tour. I was lucky enough to see The Script, and to currently possess tickets for both Coldplay and Kings Of Leon. Sadly, James Blunt tickets sold out before I managed to make a sneaky enough plan make a roadtrip to the nearest concert venue.

It's been a while since the Coldplay announcement, and thus I thought that it was about time for the next big act to be announced, in fact, I'm not lying when I say that when I woke up this morning I thought that we might get an announcement today, and I was not wrong. In November, Josh Groban will return to the country for shows at Sun City and at the Grandwest in Cape Town. Now, if Josh was going to Durban, I wouldn't have hesitated to get tickets. What, a rock fan such as myself can't like Josh? I beg to differ. While I may not listen to his music on repeat all day every day (with the exception, perhaps, of "Weeping"), I think his concert would provide some relaxed enjoyment, and be a good chance of pace from the screaming, fangirling, barrier crowds that I've grown to accustomed to. 

Anyway, regardless of the fact that I'm not going, I'm still excited for these concerts, and it seems I'm not the only one. When pursuing Big Concerts' Facebook wall - as I do more often than I'd like to admit- one sees a lot of people begging for the promoters to bring out their personal favourite band or artist. Now, I'm not one to judge these people, I spammed Big Concerts constantly about Coldplay for what was probably almost a year, however, when someone who isn't quite my cup of tea comes to the country, I prefer to keep my distaste to myself. Some people, however, feel the need to ruin it for the rest of the fans by posting comments along the lines of "dey suck", "w0rst band eva", and, well, you get the picture. However, I've hardly seen any negative comments on the Josh Groban announcement! Those who haven't said that they have their tickets already have said that it's great for his fans. This leads me to the conclusion that there is just something to downright likable about Josh that even the meanest of metalheads have trouble finding an insult to throw his way!

So, now that we concerts taking place in both October (Coldplay and KOL) and November (Josh), the big question is whether or not we'll get someone in December. Personally, I'm still holding thumbs for The Killers... (but not really)

Signs You Might Be A Fangirl (part ii)

• You know in-jokes related to your favourite band: A true fangirl is so deeply embedded in fan-culture that they are able to share a unique sense of humour with other fans. For example, if you're a Coldplayer, you'll know all about the LOLdplay movement, which now centers on Jonny Buckland's fan-made obsession with cake. If you're a Victim, you're likely to snort with laughter when Mark Stoermer tweets about being at the airport. My status: both of the examples, was well as countless others, apply to me.

• You've joined a forum related to your favourite band: This doesn't have to be an official fanclub, just somewhere where you can discuss all the latest news about your favourite band, find pictures, post articles, and just generally chat to other fans. Bonus points if you find yourself the admin or moderator of a forum, or if you've started a street team. My status: My fangirling status seems to be re-enforced by every single point I make...

• You have a username related to your favourite band: While omgmarrymechrismartin4815162342@whatevermail.com is quite unlikely, it is perfectly acceptable to use a reference to a song or a lyric as your username on sites such as twitter. It's also a great way to let other fans know instantly that you're one of them. My status: I'm a standard "Fairycat101" everyone on the internet, and for the information of my dear friends, my facebook password it not "brandonflowers".

• You can relate literally everything back to your favourite band, and I mean everything! A whole array of every day items could be a trigger for a serious fangirl spasm, you are likely to smirk or snort with laughter, and anyone around you is likely to cast an odd look in your direction. If seeing a clock will remind you of the Coldplay song, or when you're unable to glimpse a picture of a flamingo without lapsing into a fit of giggles because you're thinking of your favourite man's debut solo album, you know you've got it bad. My status: guilty as charged!

• You bring your favourite band's lyrics into everyday conversation. When you refer to travelling to any location in a roughly southerly direction as "going back down south now”¹ when you talk about someone who has left the room as being "long gone and moved on”^2, or you jump at the chance to squeal "dark clouds roll their way over  town!!!!”³every time you see bad weather approaching, you're probably a fangirl. Be warned, once again, anyone in the vicinity is likely to think that you're losing touch⁴... ah man, I just did it again! My status: I can no longer say the word "waterfall", it's now "wa-a-a-a-aterfall”⁵

1: Kings Of Leon- Back Down South. 2: The Script- Long Gone and Moved On. 3: Brandon Flowers- Crossfire. 4: The Killers- Losing Touch. 5: Coldplay- Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall

Disappointment Left, Right, and Center

Some say that certain people get so involved in bands (in other words, become fangirls) because a band is unable to cause you pain, the way a "real person" might. Let me be the one to inform you that this is completely untrue! 

All of the issues with Kings Of Leon, who have now cancelled their entire US tour, have led to some serious worries about whether or not the South African leg of the tour will go ahead as planned. Big Concerts has assured everyone that it will, and for now things seem on track, but one just never knows what happens closer to the time. Personally, I'm more concerned about potentially not seeing them than I am about the money I'd lose on the flights I've booked. But for now, let's be positive and hope that all goes according to plan, and that on the night of the 29th of October I will be screaming my lungs out to "Pyro", "Charmer" and "Back Down South". 

Now onto the next let-down: I am unfortunate enough to live in a tiny town that gets very, very few live concerts. One of these rare gems was to take place this Friday night, and the thought of seeing the band was the only thing getting me through this week. Just a few minutes ago, the band announced that they've had to cancel the show due to "circumstances beyond their control". Sigh. I don't know what the reason is, so I'm in no position to assign blame or to make any kind of comment on the cancellation, but I can say that I'm sad about it. No angry, not annoyed, I'm not currently building a bonfire in which to burn their CD's, but I am just sad.

The next band gracing the town with their presence perform on the 17th of August, ah well, only a few more weeks till I get get my fix...

Random Song Recommendation Monday

OK, so my original plan was to recommend a song with great lyrics every Monday, but I have a really, really short attention span, and I never stick to plans. Thus today I offer a random song that I love.

I stumbled upon Death Cab For Cutie's 'You Are A Tourist' several months ago whilst creeping on the internet for new songs, and I must say, it's a fantastic song. It's extremely catchy, and I've been known to sit with it on repeat for ages and ages. The beat is great, the vocals are awesome, and the lyrics- once you listen to them and analyse them a bit- are really quite relatable. "When you feel just like a tourist/ in the city you were born in/it's time to go", surely all of us have felt like this at some point in our lives.

A few years ago, when I first heard "Meet Me On The Equinox" (alright go ahead and judge me, it was on the New Moon soundtrack...) I was weary of this band for the same reason I've been weary of many bands: their name. I usually tried to avoid bands who referred to death or killing in their name. But once I got over that little obstacle, I found myself quite enthralled by Death Cab. I find them to be extremely calming, as well as being good background music for studying (coz I do sooooo much of that, not).

Other favourite tracks: I Will Follow You Into The Dark, Tiny Vessels, The Sound Of Settling