Saturday, 24 November 2012

Top 5 Tunes This Week


Yellowcard - Ten

"Both so lost and crazy, we were young so we ran"



Bayside - Duality

"I think I past my prime, and lost my mind and i'm torn"




Taking Back Sunday - Sleep

"Something practised is something perfect"




Charlie Simpson - Parachutes

"I'm so sorry for the pain, sorry for the aches, sorry for the moods i'm swinging"




Lower Than Atlantis - I'm Not Bulimic (I Just Wanted To See How Far I Could Stick My Fingers Down My Throat)

"It's my own fault that i'm fucked up but I still worry about my mental health"


Friday, 16 November 2012

Gig Moments I Never Want To Forget (Part 5)


26. Being subjected to Enter Shikari (Reading 2012)

I just can't stop talking about Reading. I miss it so much. Even being dragged along to see Enter Shikari - a band my ears just refuse to like - then being forced into the mosh pit and Meg getting so carried away she ended up punching me in the face. I did manage to get her back though.


27. Florence and the Machine (Reading 2012)

Florence played on the Saturday and surprisingly it hadn't yet rained properly - a first for the festival. Not for long though. As the masses of people stood around waiting for the flame-haired singer and the machine to make an appearance the clouds parted and dumped a weeks worth of rain on us. Everyone got soaked through and the stage looked like a swimming pool. It did fail at dampening our spirits though. If anything it made the experience more magical. We made friends, Meg sat on someone's shoulders and we started a dance pit. 


28. Meg Actually Passed Out At Mayday Parade (Cardiff 13/10/2012)

When we first went to see a band together (Paramore 2010) I warned her that if she passes out i'm leaving her where she is. 2 years later and it finally happens. We're stood on barrier and Natives and The Summer Set have already played and by the looks of it Mayday Parade would be on in a few minutes. Then Meg turned round and said to me that she really doesn't feel well so we tried, and failed, to get the security guards attention for some water. No more than a minute later I saw her shrink out the corner of my eye and fall down. Everyone stood around us looked completely freaked out especially when her eyes rolled back. Finally, the security guard noticed us and we pulled her over the barrier which was a task in itself as her legs JUST DID NOT WANT TO END. Everyone was asking me what happened and saying things like "omg that was so scary is she ok omg" while all I could do was laugh. 10 seconds later and Mayday came on. Well timed, Meg. 


29. Rian Dawson dancing behind The Maine (Yeovil 1/02/2012)

Rian was dancing behind The Maine throughout their entire set. It was funny and cute and he really really can't dance. Bless him. 


30. MEETING PARAMORE (Reading 2012)

I don't want to stay on the topic for long because it makes me cry like a big baby. But when I first saw Paramore were playing Reading I screamed and cried because I knew I would be able to see them again. Then they were announced for the signing tent and I screamed and cried because I knew the likelihood that I would meet them was like zero. We queued for almost six hours anyway despite being told we were unlikely to meet them. We were bored, hungry and tired but had other people to talk to who were all really nice. Then we made it through the first lot of barriers and were in line to see them. Then they let everyone apart from 4 of us through to the 'you will definitely meet them' queue. And then they stopped letting people through. We begged. We cried. We conquered. The security guard let us through and the hundreds on people behind us screamed and cried and a couple of people gave us a book they had made for them. Our determination not to cry completely broke at that point and we sobbed. When we went through Jeremy told me I had cool hair before I even had a chance to process that I WAS MEETING PARAMORE and I high fived them all and gushed about how much I love them and then went and sobbed some more on the phone to my dad. The guys who gave us the book - which we gave to Taylor - also came over to us and we hugged and cried some more for a while. I honestly thought I would never meet them ever and I had accepted that but then we ended up being the last people allowed through to meet them. Also I thought that they would be less perfect looking in real life but nope they're perfection. Paramore 1 - Self Esteem 0. 
Oh and then my friend found the above video of us actually meeting them floating around YouTube. 


Part One here.

Part Two here.

Part Three here.

Part Four here.


Thursday, 8 November 2012

Gig Moments I Never Want To Forget (Part 4)



16. Falling in love with Natives (Bristol 18.05.2011)

At the time Natives were known as Not Advised but whatever their name is they are amazing live. The first time I saw them was when they supported VersaEmerge on their first headline tour over here in the UK. They played the back bar of the Bristol O2 Academy and despite being a relatively unknown band they managed to get the crowd going with fun pop-punk songs. They had stage presence a lot of bands lack and seemed to genuinely enjoy being there. People that walked in not a fan definitely walked out with the intention to download every last one of their songs. 


17. Wearing onesies to You Me At Six (Southampton 13.10.2011)

We decided it would be a good idea to wear onesies to You Me At Six. We were wrong. I ended up being the only one wearing one and I was baaaaking. They did keep me warm though when we waited outside in the cold for 2 hours after the gig to meet them. Max was the first person to appear and he was there for a good half an hour then he went and got the others for us, bless him. The flash on the camera wouldn't work when we were with Max and so it took about 6 attempts to get a photo which was funny. Matt told me he liked my onesie and that they wanted to play Bristol. Dan was extremely high and hilarious and Josh told us their tour dates for the tour they did in March which hadn't yet been announced. We didn't meet Chris though, but we did see him. Overall they're lovely, down to earth chaps and I miss them a lot. Oh and when Josh went to the bus to get something my dad went with him and they had a huge conversation and Josh thanked us for coming all the way from Exeter and to this day I still don't understand how he knows that's the area we came from. 


18. Meeting Jack Barakat for the first time (Bristol 30.01.2012)

After the Bristol gig we waited outside to meet All Time Low and whoever else came out. We met Garrett Nickelsen of The Maine and then Rian and Jack. It happened to be my Dad's birthday and so Jack said "Happy birthday Dad" it was adorable. He is adorable. The entire band is adorable.


19. Hearing Panic! At The Disco play Always (Bristol 31.01.2012)

The gig was was insanely epic and when Brendon got out his acoustic guitar and performed Always I thought I was destined to become a puddle of tears on the floor. Somehow I managed to keep it together but if anyone has a time machine that would allow me to go back that'd be great. 



20. Sean Smith calling us dicks (Cardiff 11.02.2012)

When Sum 41 had to pull out of the Kerrang Tour I was gutted. But the news that The Blackout would be filling in wasn't all that terrible. I'm not their biggest fan but I have always appreciated them live. They're famous for their "going down going down going down" part of the gig whereby everyone has to get down. Sean told everyone to get down and if we don't we're dicks. It happened to be me, my brother and a couple others who got stuck and couldn't really get down. So like we were told Sean pointed right at us and called us dicks. Honestly it was hilarious. 


Part One here.

Part Two here.

Part Three here.



Friday, 2 November 2012

All For You: Arthur Walwin




Hailing from South East England Arthur Walwin is one of those artists that I just can't stop raving about. His spectacular EP "For One More Night"  is played on repeat in my house and is our set car journey music. It's not just his EP either that captured my attention. He plays guitar in a band called Paige, is a sound engineer and experiments with other people's music. If you haven't already get yourself a copy of his EP - you will not regret it. 

As an icebreaker, state one weird fact about yourself.
Not really a weird fact, but I'm allergic to/severely dislike Peanut Butter or any kind of nut product. Just the thought alone disgusts me!
Describe your EP in one word.
Emotional
What is your favourite song off of the EP?
I don't know why, but I have a soft spot for So Much For An Early Night. I'm actually bringing it out soon as a lyric video and I don't even know if it's a popular one or the right choice to go with, but I just love it.
What is your favourite song to play live?
I actually have my first ever gig with a live band on the 12th! So I don't know yet haha. But All For You always sounds great at rehearsal.
How did the song (Wisteria Lane Poker Club) with AJ Perdomo come about?
Well I've always been a fan, so I just tweeted at him, we spoke over email and we hooked it up! His wife actually lives in London, so he was actually going to come over at one point, but I didn't even have the song ready or anything so we waited til he was back in the states.
What is your writing process like? Does the music come first or the lyrics?
The chorus/hook comes first. The music usually writes itself once I've got a good hook to go with. I'll just have a sudden burst of inspiration at one point and kind of base the song around this one part I've written. This however results in me having about a million songs with just the chorus written and then I'll fill in the verse lyrics like a day before I record them.
What made you decide to pursue a solo project?
I think ever since I had a computer to myself, I've been making music on my own and recording it. I guess it was after I wrote and recorded All For You that I really decided to take it seriously and put something out. I finally had something that I REALLY wanted to share with the world.
When did you first get into singing?
I was probably about 14/15. I'd been playing guitar for a couple of years before that anyway.
What inspires you?
Sounds cliché, but life. More specifically people. Obviously my last CD's just all about break ups and love but I just love looking at the relationships we develop and the complexities of them all. Humans are so interesting and the choices we make are even more interesting.
What are your hopes for the future?
For One More Night done exactly what I wanted it to do. Before that, no one really knew who I was and know that the songs are out and there are videos and reviews and all that circulating around, my name's starting to get recognised and that's so awesome! I'm so grateful. So I guess the next step is taking that to the next level with the new EP I'm writing. In the future I'm looking at getting onto some bigger things, maybe get the next video on television, get some more songs on bigger radio stations - who knows?
What is your dream tour?
Ha! I actually got my mate Ben from Hectic Designs to do me a couple of tour laminates for this! Right, so it's Coldplay headlining, The Fray and myself as rotating main supports and then Mayday Parade opening. Yes, I've given this a lot of thought.
Who/What/When was your first gig experience?
I put gigs and concerts in different categories, so I always argue with people over this one. First concert was Michael Jackson in Wembley back in '96. First gig was this band from Essex called MCH2R in this tiny venue called Moonies. Must have been 2005 or something. Best time of my life, honestly.
If you had the chance to live again, what is the one thing you have done that you would change?
People still don't believe me about this, but ages ago I was actually going to join Asking Alexandria. Can't remember who I was talking to or if they're even still in the band, but we had it all sorted out and I was gonna go up north and stay with them and work on some songs. This was before they found Danny obviously. But yeah, I was like 16 at the time and just started college so I backed out. Would've been interesting to see where that went.
Lastly, are you aware of how many hearts you broke with your cover of Goodnight Moon?
Ahah! Such a lovely thing to say. You know, I could never match up to Jason Lancaster. His work is phenomenal. But I'd like to think I done the song justice and I'm just happy that people like it and aren't offended by the mash up!


Thursday, 1 November 2012

Intergalactic Goodness: Anavae





There probably aren't too many bands out there that can say in their first year they toured with musical legends like Hawthorne Heights as well as being lined up to support a band they consider one of their favourites, There For Tomorrow, but once Anavae got going there really was no stopping them. 
With the music industry being taken over by the generic sounds taken straight from the 'how to make millions without putting any thought into it' handbook, it's refreshing to know people like Becca, James, Jamie, Josh and Seb exist. They create music that forces you to feel something and rocks your ears into another dimension, whilst at the same time holding down jobs and completing the masses of work university drains from you. I had a root around in their minds...

Describe Anavae in one word:
Becca: Organic
Jamie: Intergalactic
James: Anti-lacklustre

With the final video from "Into The Aether" released, what's next on the agenda for Anavae? 
We're working on our next release.

You've supported Kids In Glass Houses, do you think that supporting bigger bands is a good way to showcase your music to a potentially new audience? 
Definitely. Especially if they're on a similar scene to you, as it gives you a chance to play to a whole load of people who may have never heard about you before.

Do you think that bands have it easier nowadays, with social networking site such as YouTube and Twitter, to get music out there? 
We wouldn't say 'easier'. Every band has access to social networking and online promotion, so it's still a level playing field. But it definitely has it's benefits. Again, for giving us the ability to reach a whole audience who otherwise would have never heard of us.

How was the Weekender Tour, back in September?
It was a brand new experience for all of us, an awesome one at that! We've never played 3 shows in a row before, so I was convinced I was going to be in a haggered heap by the end of it. More please! The Violet guys are literally some of the nicest dudes I've ever met. If you ever get the chance to see them live, then GO! DO IT! 


What is your favourite song to play live? 
Becca: Sunlight definitely! Or the drop in Invaesion. It just takes over my body. 

If you could play with any other band, still together or not, who would it be?
Becca: Such a toughie. I was about to say There For Tomorrow but we're supporting them on the 26th which is a little bit crazy. They're one of our favourite bands! Next stop, Evaline, Mutemath, or 30 Seconds to Mars. (I wish!) 

What is your favourite part of being in a band?
Becca: Getting to travel to places I otherwise wouldn't have, getting to meet and befriend lovely and talented people, receiving absolutely amazing feedback from people all over the world, and most importantly, getting to express myself through sounds and messes of words. This is the best kind of therapy.  

What is your favourite song you've written?
You haven't heard it yet ;)

What inspires you all individually?
Becca: People. People everywhere, and their strange conversations and interactions. Most, if not all of my songs are about moments and fragments involving other people who i've stumbled across. Haruki Murakami is a huge inspiration, as is Clive Barker, and reading in general. Movies, adverts, drones, soundtracks, photographs, the weather. Everything beautiful and ugly. 
Jamie: Science, space, the future.
James: QI XI on Dave

For the final and most important question - If you were trapped on a desert island who would you eat first and why?
Becca: What a mean question. I think Seb probably eats the healthiest out of all the guys. Most nourishing I'd say! (James would taste like multi-flavoured crisps, Josh would probably taste like fast food, and Jamie would taste like...weetabix).