A New Leaf

Well this is depressing, I haven't been online in so long that I've been logged out....

Several incorrect password attempts later...I'm here!

The only reason why I am finally writing this now is because I'm going to university tomorrow, yes university! So it suddenly dawned on me that I'm not going to have time to update this over the next few weeks especially after the appalling job I've been doing over the summer. I honestly do have a guilty conscience about that, with a slight tinge of regret.

Anyway, I remember writing a post just over a year ago about the hard slog of A-levels and the fact that I was chanting to myself 'one more year, just one more year' until university. Now it's here! Time does fly when you're having fun, especially when you think this day will never come! (yay, I made a rhyme..)

Moving on, a lot has happened since my last post in August.

Firstly I got my A-level results (that thing I've been complaining and freaking out about for way too long) and  you've probably gathered by now, if you've been paying any attention, is that I got the grades. Well in fact, I did much better than expected and thus I am off to study anthropology/party/freeze my ass off at Durham University. Wahey!

Then I went to Reading festival for the second time. Cue amazing 'paragraph' about the likes of Foo Fighters, Kasabian and Greenday:

It was so gooooood. Dave Grohl forever. Serge forever <3

Seriously, if I had time I'd write some sort of review. However Reading is Reading at the end of the day. Go and experience the intensity, the filth, the rowdiness for yourself and then you'll know what a special, memorable weekend it is. Next year, however, I'm determined to go to something a little different, maybe Shambala, maybe Bestival, I'm not sure yet.

In September I went to my first ever wedding....my dad's. After one massive clash of emotions, I decided to be a bridesmaid and it turned out to be a rather sweet day in the end.

Finally I went to Alicante for a week with my mate Jess (yeah, the same girl I went to Bulgaria with last year). This was our fourth holiday together! Hahaha! Purely coincidence, honest! The weather was perfect, the beach was beautiful and the sangria flowed well.

.....Then it was my 19th birthday. The dreaded One. Nine. I shudder at the thought. Last teenage year. Waaaah!

And what music have I been listening too? According to Spotify a lot of Santigold, alt-J, The Black Keys and Sigur Ros. According to iTunes; Alabama Shakes, Grimes, Passion Pit, Tribes, Neutral Milk Hotel and of Montreal. So lots and lots of music! Which one day I will talk to you about. Promise.

For now though, let Freshers' week commence!

Magic Number

It's been four weeks since my last post. Yet I have no decent excuse for such a length of time as I've been on holiday.

Woah, I've been off school for over a month, scary, and I'm still off for much longer, lucky.

So have I done anything massively interesting in that time? Well I've done lots of lovely things; I went to Paris for a couple of days and I've done a bit of volunteering at an art gallery, but none of that makes a particularly entertaining read therefore I won't bore you with the details.

Perhaps I could share some music with you instead? Seeming as that was initially the point of this blog. I've rekindled my love for scouring the web for songs and I have certainly done my time this month. However I haven't posted about music for ages so where to start?

The difficult part is choosing just a few songs to share with you...

Well this stands out for me. I downloaded it around two months ago. I think it's been released as a single now so it's getting some airplay and the rapper himself is also getting a  lot of media coverage so in all likelihood you would have heard this song by now. This is one of those songs which you can listen to over and over again, which for a ten minute song is saying something. I've already invested an hour and a half to it and I'm one of those people who won't listen to a song too much for risk of spoiling it. (My most played song only being played 58 times...which isn't much really) What I enjoy about this is the gradual mood change that occurs half way through, from a poppy R&B rhythm to something a bit more edgy and slow-paced, it has the desired effect of making you stop and really listen to the lyrics...'she's working at the pyramids tonight'.



Now for something different. It's not new, it's just a beautiful piece of music. Listen to it.

The top comment on the video is really cute. "When you're a kid, they tell you it's all... grow up. Get a job. Get married. Get a house. Have a kid, and that's it. But the truth is, the world is so much stranger than that. It's so much darker. And so much madder. And so much better." (by JamesIbe) See, this song just inspires.



And finally we'll raise the roof with this. Such a good dance tune.



The last comment on the video was "fuckin apeshit retardedness drop" (by SuperERoyale) ... poetically put.

Well it's a start. There's many more songs to be heard but three's the magic number so I won't overwhelm you with any more...for now.

End Of An Era

It has ended. It's over. It's no more. That part of my life has been completed and ticked off the list. I've rounded the corner, climbed the mountain, completed the marathon. The first major milestone of my life.

Yes, it's all mushy stuff (and as a warning this post only gets worse from here) but I have ended my schooling career, the most dominating aspect of my inexperienced life. It's a very strange feeling, yet I don't think it has fully dawned on me yet. I don't think it will until I head off to university and start my next chapter.

Until then I feel as if I'm in limbo.

That state of unknowing between school life and university education. It all finished incredibly suddenly and I think I'm still reeling from the shock of it all. This isn't a summer holiday, I won't be going back to school in September. I'm continually reminding myself of that.

The next 3 or 4 years appear planned out but there's always that sense of fear and anticipation. Firstly, who knows if I'll get the grades in August? - I had a nightmare about that last night. Then, if I do, one of the biggest steps of your life; leaving home and for me, travelling miles away. It's a giant leap but I hope one that will come just as naturally to me as moving schools or home.

Until then I have to sit back and wait. Well hopefully get off my ass and do something proactive this summer. Perhaps do some volunteering, festivalling and travelling. The latter two being money dependent as always.

So what have I been doing for the past month? Unfortunately no bands have been seen and so no reviews of late but I have discovered lots of songs which I will share with you soon. Since my last post it goes without saying that I've finished my A-levels. Let's all breathe a sigh of relief! I've spent a lot of time with my friends partying, clubbing and then recuperating in a sleepy town in the heart of Devon.... typical post-exam fun. Oh! And I dressed as Whitney Houston for a murder mystery evening. In the midst of it all, my school was celebrating its 150th anniversary and in absolutely pretentious fashion. I found myself attending a massive concert on the school grounds, a fashion show and a rainy, outdoor performance of Romeo & Juliet. It was all brilliant of course but very over-the-top. Finally to end our time at school, there was Commemoration day which involved many lengthy speeches, the giving of prizes, the singing of hymns and the muttering of prayers. All with tearful eyes...apart from me, heart of stone right here! Then in the evening we all donned our dresses or bow ties for The Ball. We gave our final farewell to peers, who, without saying it, we sadly realised we wouldn't see again. As well as to life-long friends who we knew we would be meeting up with shortly.

The past two years have whizzed around. Sixth form has encompassed some of the best and perhaps the worst days of my life but I hope I am leaving with no regrets. Looking further back, the past 14 years have shaped and moulded me into the person I am today. School has been my nourishment and protection and it's easy to reminisce on some wonderful memories but now I must move on and look towards the future.

Generic Exam Post & A Little Bit Of Fan-Girling

Goodness me! Well hasn't it been a long time since my last post? Over a month has been and gone already and so where do I begin?

As most of my very small demographic can relate to, I have been incredibly busy procrastinating - sorry - revising for some important, up and coming exams. So for the past couple of weeks very little else has been at the top of my agenda. Therefore, it goes without saying, that although it's been hectic, this past summer term (and also my last) has been pretty dull.

My final day of school - one of the biggest milestones in your life people! - turned out to be a massive anti-climax. However I hope the large quantity of exciting events happening after the exams will make up for that fact.

'After the exams'....only two weeks away! Who would have thought it would come around so soon? Let me just say what everyone else is saying, "I can't wait!"
However we all have these generic feelings, we all have exams, we can all relate, so let's move on.

What I really want to talk about (what I usually end up talking about lately) is Coldplay - if you can't stand that band then this would be a good time to stop reading and go about your daily lives. Although you will miss my fan-girling.

Yes....finally....finally....after 3 years of waiting and lots of blood, sweat but mainly tears, I eventually got to see them again. Monday the 4th of June 2012 at Emirates Stadium. That date will stay in my mind for a long time. Just like Saturday the 19th of September 2009 at Wembley Stadium.

As you can imagine or relate to (if you're lucky enough to have seen them) they are frickin' fantastic. To be honest there aren't any decent adjectives to describe seeing Coldplay live*. I was saying to my friend after the concert, you just have to go and experience them for yourself and perhaps ambivalent fans or even Coldplay haters will be persuaded otherwise.

Now most people might be saying at this point, "I don't care. She's obviously biased."
I am.
But I have also been to a lot of other gigs and concerts on all different scales and so I can gauge CP against others. I have seen some bloody brilliant musicians and some, not so great. Of course personal taste does influence one's perception of enjoyment as well. But Coldplay has always topped my list of best live experiences, ever.
That's why they are one of the biggest bands in the world right now (a phrase thrown around a lot, I know) ....and then in a couple of months they will disappear off the radar again *sigh*.

By tomorrow I will have finished a third of my A levels. It will also have been a week since I saw Coldplay, which perhaps makes it an ideal time to write about their concert. So hopefully a little review will be up soon.

Sweet dreams and I wish everyone with any exams looming loads of good luck!

* Monumental, stupendous, spectacular, phenomenal, mind-blowing, breath-taking, blah, blah, blah.

Three Winter Hangover Cures

Hello there! Happy New Year!

I hope everyone had a fantastic new year's, got their midnight kiss and sang Auld Lang Syne into the early hours of the morning.

My new year's resolution you ask? Work hard, play harder. That about covers it. Work hard to get the grades and the university that I want and then play harder celebrating in the summer. Or that is how I hope 2012 is going to pan out.

I have recently got into the habit of downloading or listening to playlists from various, self-proclaimed, music snobs about the best songs of the past year. I used to fall back on NME to give me some deserving and unbiased choices but now in my wizened state, I have realised what a load of pretentious garbage that magazine is.

Last year, I stumbled upon the website, musicforants.com (music for kids who can't read good) and thoroughly enjoyed their playlist for 2010. I appreciate how difficult it must be to compile such a diverse and fabulous range of music and then arrange it in some sort of order according to taste. Then, finally, after all your hard-work, the criticisms from other self-proclaimed, music snobs just roll in. However musicforants did a lovely job and yet I surprisingly forgot about them for a whole year.

Donning my detective hat, I scoured the internet trying to remember where I had found their playlist, in the hope that they'd made another one. They had!

So, I have been listening avidly to their choices and here are three out of the fifty songs which immediately caught my eye - or ear; although all the songs are jems in their own right.

I think I'm loving on these songs so much at the moment because they're very summery. In this cold, dark winter, with the excess Christmas weight and the January debt sinking in, there's nothing like a bit of cheery music to remind you that there is something to look forward to.







And yes, I know, I haven't unearthed any new bands that none of us have heard about, but let's just enjoy the music, okay?

Free will or free meal?

The last few weeks have been a hell of a busy time, which is unusual. Most summer holidays I can spend a week or two just twiddling my fingers, looking for something to do but this one has been non-stop. (more on this later)

I'm beginning to reminisce like this because it's one of my last nights as a free woman. On Wednesday I go back to sixth form. Back to the daily grind. The hard slog through timetables, restrictions, coursework, exams and early mornings. Yes, we've all been there. Some of you may still have a while to go. I have one year left and deary me, I can't wait for it to be over. I am completely ready for university. People have said that sixth form is the best years of your life. I disagree. However I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. But how long is this dark tunnel I'm about to enter for the last time? Too long.

My brother has informed me that university is the best time of your life. I hope he is right.

One more year. Just one more year.

However this is how everyone feels at the beginning of a new academic year. Am I right?
After breaking up from school about an eternity ago, I am so completely unwound that going back into the daily routine will be like diving into a pool of icy water, shocking at first, followed by a period of readjustment.

I know however that once I get back into the routine, I enjoy it. Doing A-levels especially means that you can study the subjects that you find interesting, I mean at present I'm struggling to pick one to drop. I get to see all my friends, some of whom I haven't seen all summer and catch up on all the gossip. Plus there's that freshness; new uniform/suit, new stationary, new folder, new leaf.
But most importantly this year, this final year, we're at the top of the school, the superiors, the powerful, the example-setters. Who would have thought?

But even with all my positive thinking I still just can't help chanting:

One more year. Just one more year.

Will Power!

I'm really going to need will power! As I mentioned earlier I get bored super easily and not just with music. So I'm going to need a lot of effort to keep this blog up - I hope I can do it!

Anyway, I'm really in love with this song.

Okay I'm a hypocrite, it's quite a poppy tune but everyone has that one song which reminds them of their summer and this one happens to be 'My Summer Song 2k11'.

I wish I could rollerskate..