I'll start by saying that most of what you're about to read is going to be biased because I know one of the two involved in this video. Whatever. Regardless of that, I want to share it with you and everything you're about to read has truth to it... I might just end up exaggerating it...
Videos like this make my insides happy in a way that only music videos can. It's all well and good me listening to a song and attempting, and usually failing, to pick out all the instruments that might have been used etc. but it's a whole 'nother thing when I get to see a song broken down before my very eyes, yet so carefully constructed at the same time.
It kind of reminds me of Brett Domino but less... What's the word..? Wooden? Tacky? Weird? I think that's the one I wanted... Weird. It's fun and funny. It's all the good things in life. It's exactly what music should be. Complex and simple all wrapped up in a 2 minute video.
Ahh, maybe you're wondering what about this video I find so funny... Keep your eyes peeled at about 0.42. You're in for a treat. (Sorry, Ben!). There's other little bits that make me chuckle too. Watch out for them!
I'm yet to show this to somebody and have them dislike it, that's all I'm gonna say.
What musical gems like this have you found recently on YouTube?
Originally I’d intended on
blogging about tube journeys and how I absolutely love them but then I had a
bad few days and my mind was swiftly changed…
Basically, yesterday I had a
pretty shitty panic attack (as opposed to those really good ones… God, what am
I saying?!) and it left me a bit miserable. I’ve had them before and I suspect
I’ll have one again. It’s more the inconvenience of it all that’s got to me –
not necessarily the panic attack itself.
If you’ve never had one before,
they’re rough... Your chest gets tight, you feel like you need to escape
whatever situation/environment you’re in, you feel nauseas, you question everything
and, if you’re like me, you need stillness and quiet (which is hard if they
happen in public).
I was supposed to go to work but
instead I had to take the day off because, after it happened, I felt anxious
and my chest felt tight and, in truth, I wasn’t prepared to step outside and
have it happen again. I know exactly why it happened and I’m not going to go
into it on a public blog, although maybe one day I’ll change my mind, but I
just wanted to express how irritating it is that it happened.
Oh god, I’ve become one of those
annoying people that only tell half the story which leaves people coming to two
conclusions; either I want someone to push for the rest of the story or I
wanted to involve you in one aspect of my life but don’t trust you enough to
tell you the rest. Neither option’s great.
In reality, I blogged about it
because I’m angry that I had a panic attack after not having had one for so
long and I’m angry at how badly it’s affected me.
Have you ever had a
panic attack? If so, what do you do to calm yourself down?
There are two things in life that I own a lot of; books and
DVD’s. I don’t know exactly how many of each I own but I do know that I could
probably fill the Blockbuster shaped gap in the market right now, with a little
library on the side. I just struggle to say no to them.
I do, however, have rules when it comes to buying books and
DVD’s. I will never pay more than £5 for either. I’ve got a few exceptions in
my collections, of course, but not many. I could probably count them on one
hand.
That being said, this weekend I bought 2 books and 2 DVD’s.
Let’s start with the books first…
Blurb:
“When Harold Fry leaves home one morning to post a letter,
with his wife hoovering upstairs, he has no idea that he is about to walk from
one end of the country to the other.
He has no hiking boots or map, let alone a compass,
waterproof or mobile phone. All he knows is that he must keep walking. To save
someone else’s life.”
I bought this book because it sounded like a thriller but a
lot of the reviews quoted on it said that it was touching, moving, and sad etc.
I also liked the writing style so much I read the first three pages in the
shop. In order to test out a book, I read the first paragraph because it helps
me work out if I like the style it’s written in and gives me an idea of the
book as a whole. It was because of reading the first paragraph that I read the
first three pages so I knew I had to buy it.
I started reading it yesterday and I’m thoroughly enjoying
it so far. It’ll probably be the centre of next Friday’s blog post.
Blurb:
“Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought
her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter
inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters
suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel’s story is about to be
completely rewritten.”
Having read (and become perhaps a touch obsessed with) “Looking
For Alaska”, I knew I wanted to read more of John Green’s work and this seemed
like the perfect opportunity because I know so many people have given it
glowing reviews. I can’t wait to get my teeth into this! I am slightly worried
it might make me cry though.
I bought these books from Asda where they were part of a 2
for £7 deal, making each book just £3.50. If you didn’t want to buy 2 books,
however, they’re only £3.85 each which I think is pretty good! Click HERE to see if there's anything that takes your fancy.
The DVD’s I bought aren’t usually the type of DVD’s I buy –
I’m more into action/horror/thriller films. It’s just that they were on offer
and I already knew one of the songs from one of them. Plus the lovely Zoella
had mentioned the other one recently, I believe. So I figured I’d give it a go.
I watched The Swan Princess on Saturday when I bought it and
I think it’s safe to say I fell in love with it. The songs are amazing, the
characters are lovely, and ahhhh it was like being a kid again!! I’m still yet
to watch Thumbelina but I’m tempted to put it on tonight after Holby City.
I bought both DVD’s from Matalan (can't find them on their website though). The Swan Princess was
£2.99 on its own but was part of a 2 for £5 deal so me and my friend picked a
DVD each, making it just £2.50. Thumbelina was £2.99 which I think is a bit of
a steal!
I did buy one more thing recently too which I’ll give a
little mention to…
[One Direction - One Way or Another (Teenage Kicks)]
No, I didn't buy the video but I did buy the single... I could say I bought it because it’s for charity but the
truth is I bought it because I think it’s awesome. I love One Direction
(although this hasn’t always been the case) and think they’re an incredibly
talented band.
I love how much they’ve improved since they first started and,
better still, I love that they put their own spin on the cover. A lot of people
have moaned about it but I don’t see the problem – yes, the original is great,
but so is this version too. They’re just different sounds.
The song is the official Comic Relief single and I think that it's a great choice this year. They've picked the biggest band of the moment to help a fantastic charity!
The single is available now on iTunes now for £1.99 and it's a great way of donating money to a good cause!
I’m going to start
this by saying I have become completely obsessed with this song recently, hence
why I’ve chosen to write about it, but there’s just one thing about the song
that niggles away at me so let’s start with the one negative about this song
before we go into the many positives, shall we..?
I cannot for the life
of me work out why when Rochelle starts the song singing in an accent that she
clearly doesn’t possess when she talks. You know the bit I’m on about, right?
The slight Jamaican accent she chooses to sing in for that part only. I don’t
get it. Leave the accent stuff to Sean Paul.
Right, with that over
with…
Rochelle’s vocals are
absolutely incredible on this track. With a voice as strong and consistent as
hers, it’s brilliant to see her taking the lead vocals on a track that’s going
to be as popular as this. There’s a depth to Rochelle’s voice that works
perfectly for this song. Add that depth to her range and you’ve got yourself a
job well done.
In fact, all the
vocals are brilliant. It’s nice to be able to differentiate between each
individual member’s vocals. It makes it a lot easier to see how much both
Frankie and Mollie’s vocals have improved since they first started. There’s no
denying they’re not the strongest singers in the band but they both bring
something that helps to make The Saturdays special – not just pretty faces,
after all. It also makes it easier to see what each member brings to the band
vocally – strong vocals, great harmonies, sultry voices, etc.
The Saturdays pairing
up with Sean Paul isn’t exactly a collaboration I ever expected but it does
make sense. They both make music that makes you want to dance until your feet
hurt (with the exception of The Sat’s slower songs) and they both tend to bring
a bit of summer into the winter months. If you don’t like Sean Paul or you
think the track would be better without him in it (crazy!), then you’re in luck
because that’s available too.
This is undoubtedly
one of the catchiest songs I’ve heard in recent times, especially with the “na,
na, na’s” in the chorus. I can imagine it’s going to do super well in the
States as well as in the UK. It seems like now is the time for British bands to
crack America, just look at The Wanted, One Direction, and now The Saturdays.
It’s also a great song to listen to on a miserable day because it’s inevitably
going to get you extremely excited for summer and dreaming of a road trip to
the beach or something. We might be
listening to The Sat’s first number one here… How exciting!
I’m not sure about
the video, it doesn’t really match the song or bring anything to it but it’s
still pleasant to watch. The clips of the girls dancing is enough to make me
want to learn the moves and join in. The track itself makes me want to go running
or work out in some manner. Sadly, I’m too lazy to do either.
The single is
available for pre-order on iTunes right now for £1.99 (click here to do so)
and is set to be released on March 17th.
What do you think of ‘What
About Us’? Who shines through for you on this track?
It's no secret that I blog sporadically; some times I'll blog loads, other times I disappear for weeks or months. So I've decided to try and be a bit more structured and, to do this, I'm introducing...
THE PLAN!
It looks a little something like this:
Music Monday's
Tuesday's Treat
Wicked Wednesday
Tuneful Thursday
Fiction Friday
To make it a bit clearer, Monday's and Thursday's will hopefully be reviews of albums, EP's, or singles that I like. They might also just be me wittering on about an artist I've recently found or a song that I used to love when I was 12. Either way, they're going to be music related because that's where my main passion lies.
Tuesday's will be looking at something that has brought a smile to my face or based on something that I want to purchase/have purchased recently. A little treat for the week, I guess you could say.
Wednesday's will be either a rant about something that's annoyed me recently (there's usually plenty of things) or it'll be about something I'm really hyped up about. This could cover a number of things but that's good, right? It helps to keep it less boring.
Finally, Friday's will be looking at book's. I always have a book on the go that I'm reading. So this will either be me reviewing a book I've just finished, talking about the book I'm reading at the time, or about a book I'm excited to read.
As you can see, although it introduces a bit of a structure, there's still room for me to be a bit spontaneous about the content - there's just a basic guideline I follow. This doesn't mean I'll be blogging every day, although I will try to. It just means that when I blog, we'll know what to expect.
Right... Time to get cracking with some writing, I think.
“It’s
eighteen years since Lara Carson vanished into the night, leaving first love
Flynn Erskine with lots of questions – and no answers. He’s stunned by her
return to Bath and can’t deny the spark between them. But is there something she
isn’t telling him?
Lara’s
childhood best friend, Evie Beresford, is thrilled to welcome her back –
especially as she’s about to walk down the aisle with her dream man, Joel. But
life’s never that simple, is it? Things are about to change drastically for
everyone involved. And it all starts on the morning of Evie’s wedding…”
My thoughts:
This is the
second book I’ve read by Jill and it’s just as great, if not better, than the
first. The way she captivates your attention throughout the entirety of the
novel is incredible. It’s the kind of
book that you find yourself convincing that you’ll just read one more chapter
before bed, and then another… Until eventually you admit you’re struggling to
keep your eyes open.
The
characters explored in this book are so enchanting, as are the relationships
that are pursued throughout. You find yourself willing particular characters to
stop being so silly, wishing you could sit them down and shake some sense into
them. However, the way it’s written means that you’ll be delighted with the
ending. I must admit, I shed a tear or two.
I read this
to and from work on the tube and I had to stifle laughter on more than one
occasion but, equally, there were moments where I found myself being touched by
a book and having to hold it together on the crowed tube journey. I was utterly
absorbed into this book.
The relationship
between Lara and Evie, as well as Lara and her daughter are relationships that
everybody should experience at least once in their laugh. It also provides
optimism for people that feel they’ve lost the one person they’ve ever truly
loved and connected with – but it does it in a way that proves love is no walk
in the park, hence the name.
I can’t wait
to get my teeth into another Jill Mansell novel.
“Kyle McAvoy is one of the outstanding legal students of his
generation. But he has secret in his
past, a secret that threatens to destroy his fledgling career and, possibly,
his entire life.
That secret has fallen into the hands of the wrong people,
and the only way Kyle can protect it is to play their game. They want him to
become an associate at the largest law firm in the world. With a big salary and
great prospects, the job would be a dream come true for more ambitious young
lawyers.
But for Kyle it’s a nightmare as, in addition to practising
law, he must also lie, steal, and take part in a scheme that could send him to
prison – if it doesn’t get him killed first…”
My thoughts:
Having never read a John Grisham novel before, I wasn’t
exactly too sure what to expect. What I read proved to be gripping, nigh on
impossible to put down, and just bloody brilliant!
The story follows Kyle as he tries first to come to terms
with the blackmail he’s being faced with, then as he tries to formulate a plan
to break away from it, and finally as he puts that plan into action. It’s
written in such a style that makes it easy to follow and put yourself in Kyle’s
shoes. It is perhaps this writing style that makes it so hard to put down.
I was slightly worried that, given Kyle’s a legal student,
there might some legal mumbo-jumbo used that I wouldn’t understand but,
thankfully, Grisham seems to have taken that into consideration and makes
everything easy to understand.
As well as focusing on Kyle’s predicament, it also looks at
the relationships that suffer as a result. Although he’s the main character,
you also become drawn into the lives of some of his friends and family. You
feel every emotion that Kyle feels but also the emotions that are shared by his
acquaintances.
If this book is anything to go by, it’s easy to see why
Grisham is such a successful author and I know that this will not be the last
book by him I read.
"When Darcy McCall loses her beloved Aunt Molly, she doesn't expect any sort of inheritance - let alone a small island! Located off the west coast of Ireland, Tara hasn't been lived on for years, but according to Molly's will Darcy must stay there for twelve months in order to fully inherit. It's a big shock. And she's even more shocked to hear she needs to persuade a village full of people to settle there too.
Darcy must leave behind her independent city life and swap stylish heels for muddy wellies. Between sorting everything from the plumbing to the pub, she meets confident, charming Conor and sensible, stubborn Dermot - but who will make her feel really at home?"
My thoughts:
I think most of us have, at some point in our lives, wished that we could escape to an island for a while and just clear our heads (I know I would love to do this right about now); however, when Darcy McCall finds herself inheriting a small island after the death of her Aunt, it seems like the last thing she wants to do. Of course, as with most things, there's a catch - in order to inherit her Aunt's estate, she must live on the island for at least a year, as well as finding a certain number of people to move there with her.
Thinking mostly about the money she'll inherit and all the beauty-orientated things she'll be able to buy with it and helped in part by various signs and the increasing guilt of not seeing her Aunt Molly more frequently, Darcy decides to take the plunge and move to Tara.
It's always wonderful to follow the lives of characters but it's even more rewarding when the character you're following blossoms into a strong, passionate young woman. "Breakfast at Darcy's" follows the life of Darcy, along with those chosen to live on the island with her. It shows her ups and downs but importantly her changing from an almost shallow, 'beauty is everything' woman into a sensitive, caring individual. She watches as those around her fall in love, as everybody seems to do on Tara, and hopes that it will happen to her - but does that come in the form of Conor or Dermot?
This book is incredibly well-written and easy to follow. It touches upon love, friendships, and the importance of being true to yourself. Although elements of the story-line are fairly obvious at times, it still makes for a wonderful read. The main characters are clear and well formed. They almost become like friends of yours.
This is the first book I've ever read by Ali McNamara and it certainly won't be the last!
