Update: YouTube Playlists

You can now find playlists for my Top Tunes over on YouTube!

January / Playlist 

February / Playlist

March / Playlist

Top Tunes: March

We Came As Romans - Hope

"You can change, you can become selfless. You're not set in stone. You will wade through mistakes that we all make, but just hold on"

The Story So Far - Empty Space

"All that I know is your space is empty, it's buried below the stress and the envy"

Tonight Alive - Breakdown

"There's nothing left here to fight about or cry about so don't misunderstand me, i'm giving up"

City And Colour - Of Space And Time

"Something is eating away at my brain, there's an elephant in the back of the room and it's standing in plain view, everyone can see that it looks just like me"

Man Overboard - White Lies

"What is it that everyone else has? A spine. A mind. And i'm just not like them. They've got pretty eyes and white lies and real friends"

Bastille - Bad Blood

"If we're only ever looking back we will drive ourselves insane, as the friendship goes resentment grows, we will walk our different ways. But those are the days that bind us together, forever"

Paramore - Still Into You

"You felt the weight of the world fall off your shoulder and to your favourite song we sang along to start of forever"

Fall Out Boy - The Phoenix

"You are a brick tied to me that's dragging me down, strike a match and i'll burn you to the ground" 

The Wonder Years - Passing Through A Screen Door
"I'm terrified like a kid in the sixties, staring at the sky waiting for the bomb to fall. It's all a lie, what they say about stability. It scares me sometimes, the emptiness I see in my eyes"  

Transit - Weathered Souls
"Drown me with love deep beneath the shells, let our hope stay high as our eyes collect the stars"

Take Me Back: We Are The In Crowd (16/04/2012)

Originally the Dude, Where's My Country? tour was supposed to be a joint headliner between We Are The In Crowd and Every Avenue with The Summer Set as support, but due to illness Every Avenue had to pull out much to the disappoint of many. However, no one let this ruin their night and instead we got another support act in the form of relatively new pop-punk greatness Super Prime. With their debut album #FML having just been released the trio oozed energy as they effortlessly played their way through their set. Reminiscent of early Blink-182 with Adam Newall and Austin Bond trading vocals and cracking what can be deemed of as "inappropriate" jokes the Cardiff crowd soon took them and when asked we sang back, clapped until our hands were sore and jumped higher than i've ever seen for a support act. And this was all before they blasted their way through one of the greatest covers I have ever heard - Fall Out Boy's "Sugar We're Goin' Down". At this the crowd went positively wild and once their set was done I grabbed my sister and dragged her to the merch table, got my hands on their CD and made sure to tell them how awesome they are.

Next on was The Summer Set and the irony of Brian Dales wearing a Donald Duck tee was not lost on me as his high pitched vocals filled the room. Opening with "Punch-Drunk Love" a sizable crowd was drawn in for the five of them to play their fun blend of ultra sugary pop-punk. Drummer Jess Bowen impressed me the most, clearly throwing absolutely everything she had into each drum beat, from opening song all the way through to their last song of the night "The Boys You Do (Get Back At You)". Other fan favourites such as "Chelsea" and "When We Were Young" went down with copious amounts of screaming.

Despite Tay Jardine claiming to be ill that night, you would never have known as her vocals remained pitch perfect from opener "Rumor Mill" all the way to "Both Sides Of The Story" which closed the night. The band packed all their best jams into their set including "Lights Out" and "Kiss Me Again" which Jordan Eckes actually got to sing this tour around as Alex Gaskarth was not in tow to send the crowd crazy for him. The highlight of the night came in the form of "You've Got It Made" being performed by Tay and Jordan, reminding everyone that they are just as talented stripped back, as it truly was a stunning moment. The band didn't just play fantastically, but they kept everyone amused too with their banter back and forth with each other - and us - and instead of the encore chant being the usual "one more song" the Cardiff crowd went for the "FERRI FERRI FERRI" approach much to Mike's amusement.

Reading Festival 2013

Leaving Reading Festival last year was one of the hardest things i've ever had to do and from the moment I set foot on camp I knew I would return the year after. And now here we are in 2013. With my ticket purchased before any bands had been announced I wasn't expecting much of the line-up and nor did I care as the atmosphere of the weekend is enough to lure me back. But much to my surprise the bands that have been announced so far have obliterated all expectations I had. There are some surprises, some Reading veterans and plenty of artists I really don't like but will no doubt find myself drunkenly dancing to anyway. I would suggest songs for newcomers to these bands to listen to but it would always be "ALL THE SONGS" so without further ado I present you with the bands that have me wishing the year away so I can get to Reading faster. 

FALL OUT BOY

Oh man oh man oh man I feel sorry for anyone that is near me when they play their set. I will turn into a total beast and I will be shrieking the lyrics along with absolutely everything I have in me. I joked a while back about how great it would be if they came off hiatus and played Reading and then they did come off hiatus and they are playing Reading and just thinking about it is making me tear up.

BRAND NEW

When I saw them last year they surpassed all expectations and played just about every song I could have wanted them too. They destroyed things and Jesse stage dived so far into the crowd I was convinced he was going to kill himself. With a back catalog with plenty of rock, pop-punk, acoustic and just plain weird the band are sure to be one of my highlights.

CITY AND COLOUR

Dallas Green,  please oh please can we get married? City And Colour, the band of Alexisonfire front man, is set to break my heart in about a million different ways with his beautiful blend of acoustic music penned with lyrics so lovely I will be a puddle on the floor of the NME tent.

NEW FOUND GLORY

Pop-punk kings return to Reading main stage where they will bring their classic anthems to get the crowd going. They never disappoint live and their bounds of energy will awaken the festival-goers from their inevitably hungover stupor.

BRING ME THE HORIZON

Playing the main stage BMTH are sure to bring a hell of a crowd to accompany what is certain to be a hell of a set. Find me in the most pit. 

FRANK TURNER

More acoustic fabulousness from Frank Turner and the Sleeping Souls. They never fail to put a grin on my face and i'm sure they won't fail in spreading the festival cheer.

BASTILLE

With new single Pompeii, Bastille have suddenly found themselves as the next best thing which is perfectly fine by me if it means the crowd give it their all for a set that will be unbelievably fun. They have a knack for writing catchy as hell songs that sound incredibly upbeat with lyrics that are so harshly relatable it's like the words have been picked straight from my brain.

GREEN DAY

Sitting outside my tent last year, hearing the first guitar strums of their "secret" set and then watching practically the entirety of Reading flock to the main arena and then an actual crowd forming in front of the main stage screens was a surreal sight. If it's anything to go by I imagine them actually being on the main stage will send everyone into a frenzy. Pure nostalgia will accompany with their set. 

BIFFY CLYRO

I would be lying if I said I wasn't surprised by their headlining but all the same i'm sure the Scottish rockers will put on a headline worthy set that should not be missed. 

TWIN ATLANTIC

After catching the last half of their set last year and seeing them play the Bristol 02 Academy I already know these guys will go down a treat with their radio famous single Free and adorable humbleness. 

EMINEM

Again, nostalgia will be my date for this headline act. Don't trust anyone if they say they're not excited for Eminem. 

THE BLACKOUT

I've seen them live so many times now and every time they've been entertaining and musically perfect with songs that involve a lot of crowd participation which always makes things better. 

Reading 2012 (Thursday/Friday)

Reading 2012 (Saturday)

Reading 2012 (Sunday/Monday)

Take Me Back: Paramore (14/12/09)

Back in 2009 I ventured to Cardiff with my dad - after being abandoned by Meg for school play rehearsals - (oh, how young we were) to witness the phenomenon that is Paramore for the first time. Being too young in the past - damn those venue age limits - I was bouncing off the walls to see them. 

Over a year later they finally returned to our shores and this time I was going. Spare tickets handed out to my brother's flatmates we looked out the window of their student digs and waited for the mother of all queue's to shrink before crossing the road and heading into the venue. Honestly Now, Now Every Children and Paper Route's performances are a blur so I won't do them the injustice of trying to remember because I really just don't as I was too busy hyperventilating that my favourite band were going to be in the same room as me (how the hell did I keep it together when I met them last year...).

Then the younger You Me At Six took to the stage. I was a total cynic to these lads thanks to Save It For The Bedroom which just drove me crazy but after seeing them live they convinced me otherwise. Well, as long as that song isn't mentioned. Take Off Your Colours was their only album in existence at the time and they were all sporting enough hair to make 100 wigs out of. Opening with Kiss And Tell and finishing with The Rumour they managed to win over a lot of new fans during their 8 song set list that may have had to do with the fact that the one and only Hayley Williams joined them for slow song Always Attract. One minute Josh Franceschi was singing and I was falling in love and the next I was being crushed on all sides and the crowd was screaming at the top of their lungs. Being 5 ft 3 and the population of Cardiff seeming to be quite tall I couldn't see what was going on and then I heard quiet female harmonies and a part in the crowd let me glimpse the blonde head of Hayley. It's no wonder I couldn't see what was happening. 

And then when the room went dark and the haunting guitars to the Brand New Eyes Intro began, the deafening screams of the crowd reached new levels and the flash flash flash of cameras blinded the room. The drums shook the floor and the crowd joined in with the declaration of "there's evil in your heart and it wants out to play" and with slickness that only Paramore can achieve they moved into Ignorance, otherwise known as the best angry song ever written, second only to Brand New's Seventy Times 7. And the crowd got louder still as the bridge hit and Hayley clambered on top of the cases, threw the microphone out to us and waited for the yells of "Ignorance is your new best friend" to reach the quintet's ears. The rest of the set was brimming with the best of Paramore from Emergency to Crushcrushcrush to love ballad The Only Exception and it seemed that the further into the set they got the louder the crowd became, the bands' enthusiasm apparently contagious. Having been a fan from the start - not gonna lie I do feel a tad smug at that - I had the worst feeling that I would be disappointed live and had convinced myself that the video's were making them seem better than they were but where ever those thoughts came from Paramore did a damn good job at smashing them into pieces. Vocally Hayley was outstanding never hitting a bum note even when flinging herself around the stage and her band mates shone live playing their instruments like it's a matter of life or death. A Paramore show wouldn't be a Paramore show without the infamous "Pressure Flip" from Josh Farro and Jeremy Davis. We know it's coming and yet when it does it's still impossible to contain our gasps, praying they don't fall with a tiny part of us hoping they do, because really, how can 5 people be so perfect? But of course they flip, they land, the little self esteem remaining is shattered and the show goes on. Finishing their set with Decode the band disappear off stage and the chanting of "Pa-ra-more! Pa-ra-more!" ensues. Soon enough the band return to play Misguided Ghosts before launching into Misery Business which had the crowd going mad. Paramore finished their epic night in Cardiff with Brick By Boring Brick where the final "ba ba ba ba ba ba ba da's" from the crowd sounded so beautiful and desperate for them not to leave us that it reduced me to tears. 

Artists Everyone Should Love: Tonight Alive

Back in 2008 sixteen year old Jenna McDougall joined forces with Whakaio Taahi, Cameron Adler and Jake Hardy. She was shortly followed by Matt Best and, finally, Tonight Alive were born. With 2 EP's - All Shapes & Disguises and Consider This - and a full length that features the legendary Mark Hoppus - What Are You So Scared Of? - the Australian pop-punkers are taking the world by storm.

Their music edges out of the boundaries of typical pop-punk with songs such as "Starlight" providing pure feel good sugary catchiness whilst "Amelia" takes on a darker tone that highlights their metal influences. They can do pop and they can do breakdowns all without sounding disjointed. Musically the guys play with perfection achieving light hearted bouncy pop to heavy instrumentals that works in perfect harmony with Jenna's vocals that can go from soft to angry and commanding in the space of one epic drumbeat courtesy of Matt. Their lyrics cover the trials and tribulations of growing up with songs about relationships, the loss of a friend and learning how to get out and live life.

Touring extensively over the years, they've earned their place in the scene and proved they have what it takes to make it big. Having just done a stint in the UK on the Kerrang tour, the Australian based band are in the midst of recording for their second full length before heading back out on tour, this time across America.

"Breakdown" their new single featuring Benji Madden is set for release on March 12th.

In Which I Talk About Me, Myself And Blog

I have no recent photo's of me so instead you can have this one from Reading aka the happiest I have ever been, seriously LOOK AT ME. 

I'm not entirely sure if there's a purpose to this post other than introducing myself a little bit more than my about me does and giving a bit of background to my blog. So without further pre-waffle to what is likely going to be a waffley post, hey hi hello I am Elise. I am 18 and when I think about that for too long it freaks me out especially when I can now say I turn 20 next year. How terrifying is that? I live in the back of beyond nowhere with cows and hills and trees and dodgy country roads with pot holes the size of the moon and I promise you I am not exaggerating. My addiction to buying books is becoming unhealthy to the point I think rehab might actually be my only option and my pony who is not a pony but a big horse turned 19 the other day and she means more to me than anything else. Have this picture from the very first time I fell off of her for your amusement:

I also love watching films and am completely and utterly in love with a number of actors and actresses but Jennifer Lawrence wins the prize for life-ruiner. I struggle with motivation and work best under pressure and strangely enough when i'm angry. There's so much more I could write about myself here but as you are on a predominantly music blog i'll talk about that.

If I could be surgically attached to my iPod I would be. I can't leave the house without it and I even take it to gigs despite there clearly being no point in that. I started off as the queen for all things pop and then eventually the likes of Blink-182, Taking Back Sunday and New Found Glory began to infiltrate my young ears courtesy of my film blogging brother. From then on I became "the one who listens to weird music" and if that's what people wanted to call it then hell I was damn proud as now those bands that were considered "weird" have made the world fall in love with them, here's looking to Paramore, Fall Out Boy and the likes. My brother would give me bands to listen to and within a day I would know their entire discography by heart but eventually he had to go to university and left me to my own devices to find new music. Then as I left school and began my A-Levels (Media Studies, English Language and Literature and Psychology) people started asking ME what I wanted to do at university. Decision making is most certainly not my forte. I think everyone always expected me to work with animals but I knew I could never have dealt with anything gross/sad so this led me to music journalism. Hurrah of course it all made sense. So i'm heading off to study music journalism in September but until then I have this blog. 

Why "Sunlight Through A Straw"?

Sunlight Through A Straw is the name of a song by Anavae. Having been a fan of Becca and Jamie's previous band End Of The Spectrum i've been a huge Anavae fan from pretty much day one and even had the opportunity to interview them. To me, and if I remember Becca's answer to someone's question correctly, the idea behind the line "sunlight through a straw" is that even when things are crap there is always that something/someone that offers a little ray of hope and to me and so many other people that is what music is - that little ray of sunshine. 

What will I find on your blog?

I try to keep to certain themes on my blog and my philosophy is pretty much that if I don't like it I won't write about it because I believe in sharing what I think is good not bad mouthing something I don't like because at the end of the day everyone has their own opinion so what's the point in drawing attention to what I hate when I can bring positive attention to what I love?

 I have the introducing label which does as it says - introduces new and/or small bands that I think deserve all the attention possible. Bands such as Anavae are in this section and were unsigned when I posted about them and now they're signed to LAB Records so I would keep your eyes peeled. I then have interviews which is a label that is severely lacking at the moment but i'm working on it - promise! There's also album reviews which again I plan to fill with reviews eventually. Gigs of course are also reviewed on here and I have tons lined up and loads still to review so keep your eyes out for those. If you're ever stuck for what to listen to next I used to do top tunes posts weekly but a lack of time meant my blog was either filled with those or I missed weeks so as of this year I do them monthly. Musical Ramblings is a tag full of anything and everything but mostly lists. From bands coming to steal hearts to my favourite female vocalists and my attempt to remain un-fangirly at "Now". 

There's also a search bar on my blog so if you want to see anything by a certain band or anything just type it in and it should come up!

Anything new?

I intend to start a new label soon of "artists everyone should love" these bands are a bit too "big" to go under the "introducing" label but people might still need convincing of their brilliance. Other things to look out for in the future include my top 100 songs and if I can possibly bare it, my top 10 albums although that is SO going to be impossible to narrow down. I also want to launch a "gallery" as such, just a label with all my gig photo's in. Should I ever finish my stack of coursework I also want to start doing monthly overviews of what has been going on in the musical world. 

Can I find you anywhere else?

Yes! Again, when I have the time I write for Yuppee and Lo-Fi Music. Alternatively follow me on twitter to see my incessant ranting about coursework and how bands are slowly but surely bankrupting me and ruining my life. 

How can I be on your blog?

If you're in a band or you're a record label and you want to be featured on my blog feel free to drop me an email at sunlightthroughastraw@gmail.com 

I love hearing new stuff and would love to hear from you. Also if you have your own blog or perhaps you don't but you really want a go at the whole blogging thing I am open to guest writers so if you've been to a gig and want to write a review for this blog then drop me an email or a tweet or whatever and we can organise something!

I'm also open to any suggestions on what to write about or if there's something you want more of, again just send me an email or a tweet. 

Now, I really must sleep. 

Introducing: The Dress Down Kids

The Dress Down Kids are a group of five genius Manchester lads who have combined hip hop with rock music to create the ultimate musical fusion known as street rock. The first form of the band was an acoustic trio that played shows around the local Manchester area until eventually, after switching who plays what a few times, the final cut of The Dress Down Kids became Tristan on lead vocals; Lee on rhythm guitar; Ajay on drums; Fletch on lead guitar and Tom playing bass. 

The band's YouTube showcases their ability to play acoustically with finesse as well as playing full band just as fantastically. Their most recent song Tear The Roof Off can be seen playing on Scuzz, while eager fans await for it to be officially released so we never have to be without the fun song with an insanely catchy hook that, like the video shows, could even get your grandparents dancing their feet off. The guitars are pop-punk and the music so infectiously bouncy and without even a moments hesitation Tristan can take the punk and turn it into slick rap that never sounds out of place. 

If you happen to live anywhere near Manchester, where they play shows regularly, then please for the sake of those stuck miles and miles away go and check out these guys live as they offer tonnes of energy, epic music and a show i'm sure will be unforgettable as The Dress Down Kids are pure talent. 

Find them here:

YouTube

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