The Sad Phase

I heard this song at an a cappella show at my school and went home to download it immediately. It's a really good one for singing loudly and feeling like a badass while doing it. I don't know if I'm late to the game on this one because it's from the Hunger Games soundtrack so people may know it from that, but I'm not into Hunger Games so I wouldn't have heard it.

I don't really feel like doing a proper/thorough review of this show mainly because I saw and reviewed Kodaline a few months ago and it would end up largely redundant but much like last time it was a fabulous show and overall experience so I must touch on some aspects of it. Their songs are always so fabulous and filled with emotion and they tweak the studio versions ever-so-slightly yet perfectly for live performances. They are also all really sweet guys that came out to talk to fans after both shows that I went to which always gives a band extra points in my book, especially since Kodaline is becoming increasingly popular. But what I really want to give attention to in this post is the opener, LP. Before the concert I only knew her song "Into The Wild" which I downloaded almost exactly two years ago when I heard it on a commercial (actually I just checked my iTunes out of curiosity and it was indeed two years ago yesterday..weird). Anyway, I liked the song but never really thought anything else of it. First of all she is just one of those people you look at and you immediately know she is just badass and awesome. But not in like a threatening way, more of an i-want-to-hang-out-with-you way. That aside, she has one of the most remarkable voices I have ever heard. And sure I could tell from her song that it was unique and powerful, but during her performance it was flawless. And she hits some crazy notes. And I just loved her whole set, but her music is so hard to locate online! I particularly liked her song "Your Town" which I cannot find anywhere so if you know anything hook a girl up. So with my little girl-crush rant out of the way now, I'll briefly talk about Kodaline of course. I just love the way Steve will cut out singing and let the crowd fill in, because it's so overwhelming in a good way, of course, to hear this chorus of voices singing some of these really emotional lines, and this specific crowd really knew their stuff. I can't help but think about how crazy that experience must be for the band. The absolute highlight of the night though was when they played the song "Talk." Aside from the obvious "All I Want," "Talk" is my favorite on the album, and they did not play it when I saw them in October. This time, I hadn't looked up their recent setlists because I guess I assumed it would basically be the same. When they started playing the song I was so so pleasantly surprised and just stood beaming through the whole thing, although with tears in my eyes as well. I will continue to go to Kodaline shows until the day I die, it was truly fantastic once again. Not to mention the best Valentine's Day I could have asked for, so what if I was alone?

1. Love Will Tear Us Apart - Joy Division 2. I Don't Want Love - The Antlers 3. Love Is Lost - David Bowie 4. Terrible Love - The National     (also check out the Birdy cover that made a nice appearance in     Grey's Anatomy which I think I may even like more than the original) 5. Breaking Hearts - James Vincent Mcmorrow

Can't believe this is a year old and I just found it but this cover is beautiful and I absolutely melted at the incorporation of All I Want.

Recently discovered Phosphorescent and I like them a lot, so I was happy to find this is very nice cover of one of my favorite Lou Reed songs.

This is my favorite song of the moment. I found it going through Pitchfork's top tracks of 2013 and I literally could not stop playing it. It's really an interesting piece - these raw vocals come breaking through the dreamy  synths that open the track and, eventually joined by some 80's-like percussion, it builds up to the entrancing and seemingly never-ending hook, "I just called you up to get that play-by-play." And if I wanted to put it simply it's a super catchy song that is also really great to listen to while driving. Seriously, I suggest that.

The other night my friend gave me a story to read and this song happened to be playing from his computer at the same time. I can't adequately capture the story for you in a few words, but it was in the most general sense about love and adventure. And i'm certainly NO romantic, but the music was providing such a nice background to what I was reading and the two came together in my head sort of like a beautiful little film. I just really love the simple melody, the way it builds, and that sort of distanced/distorted sound of the vocals.

Phildel / Moonsea

*(I wasn't really sure how to rank Boston Calling Festival among regular concerts, especially since I really only saw three bands but the Airborne Toxic Event's performance alone was a standout for me and deserved to be on this list so there ya go). 

I saw these guys open for Bastille in September. I had never heard of them so I went out and listened to some of their stuff before the show, but I only really knew "Glitter and Gold" and "Overdose" going into the concert. They played "Overdose" as the last song of their set and I was already so excited in general about being at that show, and then they played this one song that I knew and it really pumped me up. It's just  a fun song so there was a lot of energy in the crowd. Now whenever I listen to it I think about being at that show and it gets me excited and in a good mood. Anyway, they came out yesterday, I believe, with this really cool video for "Overdose" soo everyone check it/them out!

For about two years now, "Turbine Womb" by Soap&Skin has been among my favorite songs. It's a really interesting instrumental piece with a very dark, creepy vibe. For some reason I never bothered to look up her other music until last night. To be quite honest, some of it terrified me, but I found this song "Wonder," and I cannot stop listening to it over and over again. I just think it's so beautiful and I love the haunting sound of the layered voices. 

I absolutely love the nostalgia of this video. I am a huge fan of Hot Fuss and Sam's Town, but I only marginally know Day & Age, and I don't know Battle Born at all. So this video provided a nice walk down memory lane and reminded me how much I love them. Not really sure why it's Dianna Agron portraying Brandon Flowers, especially because Brandon himself is also in the video, but I actually think she's really good in this.

I'm not a Kanye fan, so my first exposure to the song "Bound 2" was when I watched the James Franco and Seth Rogen parody that exploded onto the internet today. Setting aside how brilliant and hilarious it is, I actually really liked the hook of the song, sung by Charlie Wilson. I was kind of hoping to find it as a whole song elsewhere, but it's actually not a sample, it's an original part. BUT then I found this video of two minutes of just the hook and I love it.

Whenever I mention to someone that David Lynch makes music they always seem so surprised, like making music with structure and melody and stuff is uncharacteristic of him. Well, it is, but they don't realize his music is not that at all -  it's just as dark, dreamy, and mysterious as his films. I don't think it gets much more Lynchian than this song. It's horrifying yet I can't stop listening to it. Why do I love him so much?

Okay so it took me a while to write this but give me a break I'm a college student. Sleigh Bells aren't exactly one of my favorite bands, and their music is certainly not characteristic of my tastes, but it's definitely fun and so are their live shows.This was my second time seeing them in concert so luckily I knew what to expect from the crowd. Those people don't mess around. What was surprising though was the diversity at this show - there was every race, every age, some guy in drag... When I saw them in Philly last summer, I went with my dad and he was by far the oldest person there. People kept saying "you're such a good dad for coming with her" to which he proudly responded "no no no...i made her come with me" (which was true). The point was no one expected an old dude to willingly endure a Sleigh Bells show. But that wasn't the case last weekend at the Royale. But that also didn't mean the crowd was at all subdued. These people don't care who they hurt, and last summer I was admittedly that girl who would like roll her eyes and get offended when people shoved her, although that could have to do with the fact that I was with my dad. This time I thought, screw it, if that's what everyone does then I guess that's the way to enjoy Sleigh Bells. So I joined in with the crazy jumping and shoving, was literally head-butted by someone, and ended up drenched in sweat (mine or other people's, who knows). And it was sick, it was such a fun show. Although I didn't get a single picture in focus. But I got to hold Alexis's arm when she crowd surfed. Even if you marginally know their music I suggest going to the show unless you are faint of heart or have skin made of paper or something. We waited to meet her out back of the venue, and she wasn't talking because Derek said she was having voice troubles since it was toward the end of the tour. But you never would have guessed while she was screaming up on stage. She was super nice, and somehow still had pristine hair and makeup after the show. And bonus - I didn't have to go to this one alone!