2013 favourites

Unbelievable that 2013 has almost come to an end. So I thought I would look back on the music-related things that happened this year and share my all-time favourites.

Gigs:
I've seen quite a few amazing artists over the past year. Like for example Cody Simpson, Lawson and The Vamps, just to name a few. But the most amazing act I've seen in 2013 was Jessie J. I saw her at a festival last summer, she was the headliner so she still had a full-on two hour set. She absolutely smashed it.

CD's:
A few of my favourite artist released albums this year.
*Selena Gomez - Stars Dance.
I love this album a lot because it's a lot more her own style. The songs sound a lot more like electronic music. It's a lot less "Disney-like" and a lot more mature, I would say. Even though I liked her older albums as well (a few years ago) I like the change she made, because I think she grew and most of her fans grew along with her.
*Cody Simpson - Surfers Paradise.
Last summer Cody finished up a new album full of his "summer vibes", and it's fair to say these songs have been my summer tunes. All of the songs are just amazing and it just makes me want to run outside and dance.

Artists:
There are a few artists I've been loving for the past year.
*The Vamps. This year I fell absolutely in love with this band. They are an amazing band who put covers on YouTube on a regular base, but they also brought their first single out 'Can We Dance'. I got the chance to see them live last summer (before they even brought their single out) and they were fabulous.
*The 1975. "The breakthrough act of the year" according to MTV, and they're right. Their debut album came out this summer and they toured through Europe, America and Australia already.

Singles:
I've been loving these singles in 2013.
*Avril Lavigne - Here's to Never Growing Up
"Singing Radiohead at the top of our lungs. With the boom box blaring as we're falling in love. Got a bottle of whatever, but it's getting us drunk. Singing here's to never growing up" it's fair to say that this song has been my jam, past spring.
*Taylor Swift ft. Ed Sheeran - Everything Has Changed
I already loved this song back in 2012, because it was already on her album 'Red', which came out in October 2012. But this year the music video for 'Everything Has Changed' came out and everyone seemed to absolutely love it because of the little Ed and the little Taylor.

The Christmas Tag

I found this tag on youtube and I'm really excited for Christmas so I thought that it would be nice to answer the questions on this tag.

Picture credits: Google Imagine

1. What's your favourite holiday movie?
Is it bad that I have never seen 'Elf'? Everyone goes on about how good it is, so I guess I'm going to watch it this year with Christmas. My favourite holidaymovie is 'Home Alone', but only the first movie or maybe even the first two but the others are just bad.
2. What are your favourite Christmas colours?
I would have to go for the classic Christmas colours such as dark red, dark green and gold-ish.
3. Do you like to stay in your PJs or dress up for Christmas?
It depends on what I'm doing for Christmas. If I'm going out with the family I would dress up all fancy but if we're just having dinner at home I will wear my comfy clothes like Christmas jumpers and sweatpants.
4. If you could only buy one present for a person this year...
It would be something for a child who deserves it a lot.
5. Have you ever built a ginger bread house?
No, I haven't yet but it's something I would love to do.
6. What do you like to do during your Christmas break?
I usually just sit indoors, wear sweatpants and cosy jumpers/sweaters, drink lots of tea and hot chocolate and watch tv-shows. Also I just love to stay in bed, especially when it's freezing cold outside and it's so warm in the bed.
7. Any Christmas wishes?
Not really. I just hope for peace and love, that sounds cliché.
8. Favourite Christmas smell?
Near me there aren't really candle-shops or whatever. So as weird as it sounds, my favourite Christmas smell is the smell of a regular candle when it just stopped burning. That sounds so strange but the smell reminds me of church and Christmas.
9. Favourite Christmas meal or treat?
That's a hard one. I just love all the food in general, but the thing I love the most is an ice cake my mum always makes on Christmas day.

The questions:
1. What's your favourite holiday movie?
2. What are your favourite Christmas colours?
3. Do you like to stay in your PJs or dress up for Christmas?
4. If you could only buy one present for a person this year...
5. Have you ever built a ginger bread house?
6. What do you like to do during your Christmas break?
7. Any Christmas wishes?
8. Favourite Christmas smell?
9. Favourite Christmas meal or treat?

I tag:
I tag whoever would like to answer the questions on this tag. Please tweet me the links if you did the tag yourself.

Feel free to contact me:
Email: bandsandblogs@gmail.com
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November Favourites

I know it's a bit late, because we're already almost halfway into December. I decided to post the music-related things I loved in November. So these are the things that I've been loving the past month.

Singles:
*The Vamps - Wildheart
Wildheart was always my favourite unreleased song from The Vamps, and I really hoped it would be their first single. But thank god it ended up being their second single! I love this song so much because it brings a nice vibe and it sounds a bit country-ish.
*Little Mix - Move
"FEELING LIKE IT'S MY BIRTHDAY. LIKE CHRISTMASDAY CAME EARLY. JUST WHAT I WANT SO WHEN WE MOVE, YOU MOVE." This song is really catchy and dance-able.
*The Wanted - Show Me Love (America)
This song is so romantic and adorable. "I could've shown you America, all the bright lights in the universe. We could've reached the highest heights, a different place a different life.  Remember that night underneath the stars, for a minute I thought the world was ours. All you had to do was show me love." And we can't not talk about Nathan in his smoking, behind his piano, looking all handsome.

The 1975. Picture credits: Google Image

Bands:
*The 1975.
Since last summer all my friends on twitter couldn't stop talking about this band. So I decided to give them a listen and I absolutly love them. I found out that they're playing a gig in a small venue 30 minutes away from my town in March. So I'm going to see them in a few months and I'm really excited about that. My favourite songs from the 1975 are 'Sex' and 'Chocolate' and 'Girls'.

Scarlet Conviction

Scarlet Conviction is a four-piece rockband from North East England. The band is formed in 2011 by Charlotte Dawson (bass and vocals), Angela Dawson (lead guitar and vocals), Scott Jameson(drums) and Josh Thompson (guitar and vocals).
The band has been around for a few years already and they have an EP out, 'Just for Tonight' and a self-recorded demo CD called 'Tales from the Redwood'.
The band also has a few gigs coming up in Newcastle, South Shields and Byker.
I think 'Scarlet Conviction' is a really good rockband with their own sound. They are definetly worth checking out and 'Tales from the Redwood' is free to download on SoundCloud (the link is below).

Picture credits: Scarlet Conviction

Twitter   Twitter Charlotte   Twitter Josh   Twitter Scott
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Free download of 'Tales of the Redwood' on SoundCloud
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Autumn is Awesome Tag

Credits: Google Image

I know Autumn already started a while ago and because it hasn't ended yet so I thought about answering the questions on this tag.

This tag is created by Rachel Whitehurst and she made a youtube video about the it (her youtube channel is http://www.youtube.com/user/icallitambrosia/videos), but I thought I could translate this into a blog-post.

1. Favourite/least favourite thing about fall?
My favourite things about fall are thick sweaters/jumpers and thick sweatpants. I also have an obsession with beanies, so I love to be able to wear beanies indoors and outdoors in Fall. My least favourite thing is that the weather changes so much and I always end up dressing wearing either to thick or to thin clothes.
2. Favourite clothing item for fall?Sweaters and jumpers! My favourite sweater has "GEEK" on it and I bought it when I was in London. I got it at like a little market-stand at Covent Garden.

3. Favourite makeup item for fall?It's not really a make-up item but dark nailpolish is one of my favourite things for fall. Dark purple, dark red and dark green are my favourites. I also like tinted lipbalm in the fall because the colder weather always makes my lips really dry so tinted lipbalm is my fave makeup item for fall.
4. Favourite fall food/drink?
My favourite fall drink is mint or strawberry tea and my favourite fall food - more like a snack - is chocolate cake.
5. Fall tvshow premiere you're looking forward to the most?
The show already started a few weeks ago - which was in the fall though - but 'Once Upon a Time' season 2 just started over here. I absolutly love this tvshow because I love fairytales and I think the actors are really amazing. Also something I'm looking forward to a bit is Geordie Shore season 6 - guilty pleasure!
6. Favourite fall tradition?
I like Halloween but where I live we don't really celebrate it. I do like to watch Halloween movies but Halloween isn't that much of a hype where I live. I did go to a Halloween party this year so I finally go to dress up for it. But my ABSOLUTE favourite fall tradition is 'Sinterklaas' which is a Dutch celebration where you basically put your shoe in front of the fireplace - sometimes with a carrot for Sinterklaas his horse or a letter/drawning for Sinterklaas - and the next morning you find a gift in your shoe. Most shops are decorated with Sinterklaas-stuff, and I love the food that goes with it as well.

I tag:
Feel free to do the tag yourself (and tweet me the links). I tag a few of my favourite bloggers:
Shelley from the-shelley-diaries-blogspot.co.uk
Emily from beautyaboveandbeyond.co.uk
Emma from emmaloujohansson.co.uk
Maxine from maxinewhitneyxo.blogspot.uk

The questions:
1. Favourite/least favourite thing about fall?
2. Favourite clothing item for fall?
3. Favourite makeup item for fall?
4. Favourite fall food/drink?
5. Fall tvshow premiere you're looking forward to the most?
6. Favourite fall tradition?

Feel free to contact me
E-mail: bandsandblogs@gmail.com
Twitter: @bandsandblogs

My October favourites

Albums:
These are some of the album's I've been loving:
*Lawson - Chapman Square Chapter II
The re-pack of their first album "Chapman Square" has finally arrived! I really love the acoustic songs and the new songs on it. My favourite song on the album is 'Parachute' because it's a bit of a new sound but I really like it!
*Union J - Union J
These X Factor cuties released their very first album. I already loved them when they were still competing on the X Factor and I absolutely loved their singles 'Carry You' en 'Beautiful Life'. So it was fair to say I got pretty excited for the album.  And I really wasn't dissapointed when I first heard the tracks. My faves are 'Where We Are (acoustic)' (only on the deluxe edition), 'Last Goodbye' and their cover of Demi Lovato's 'Skyscraper'.
*Lawson - iTunes festival
The Lawson-boys played a set at the iTunes Festival when they opened up for Jessie J. You can buy a few of the performance on iTunes. It's only €2,99 for 4 performances, it's worth the money!

Singles:
These are some of the singles I have been listening to in October:
*The Vamps - Can We Dance
Who doesn't like to jam out on this song?! This is an absolute feel-good-song and I'm in love with it!
*Katy Perry - Roar
This song is an absolute T-U-N-E! If you feel down, you just need to put this song on and I bet you feel better in no-time! "I got the eye of the tiger a fighter dancing through the fire cause I am a champion and you're gonna hear me roar, louder, louder than a lion cause I am a champion and you're gonna me roar"
*Taylor Swift - Sweeter Than Fiction
Taylor wrote the song for the soundtrack of the movie "One Chance" with Jack Antonoff (guitarist in the band Fun.). "There you'll stand, ten feet tall. I will say, I knew it all along. Your eyes wider than distance. This life is sweeter than fiction" ♥

Feel free to contact me
E-mail: bandsandblogs@gmail.com
Twitter: @bandsandblogs

What to wear to gig in Autumn/Fall

For this time I decided to do something different. Instead of writing something about upcoming bands, I thought of some outfit suggestions for concerts/gigs in Autumn/Fall. I am not sponsored by any of these shops and these are just sets of outfits I made.

Casual chic:

"Pizza, love, boys, music, parties, dancing, whatever", every girl needs a dress like this in their life. With the cute star/striped beanie and the jacket it's very casual. The kneesocks with the dots are just really cute and the creepers with the orange are really cute as well. I think this is really nice for a concert in the fall.
1. Star Spangled Pom Hat - Forever21 - €6,90 - £5.65
2. Free Spirit Weekender Dress - Forever21 - Colour: Grey/Creme - €14,75 - £12.00
3. Wool-Blend Varsity Jacket - Forever21 - Colour: Grey/Black - €33,75 - £29,75
4. Sheer Pinspot Knee Socks - Topshop - Colour: Black - €7 - £5.00
5. Tami Flatform Lace Up Pumps - Topshop - Colour: White - €20 - £15.00

Cute:
Who says a croptop is only for the summer?! With a nice, warm cardigan and skinny jeans it's still ideal for Autumn. The lace creepers are perfect to finishes up the outfit. This is perfect for any type of concert.
1. Roll back crop tee - Topshop - Colour: Grey Marl - €13 - £10.00
2. Strechjeans - H&M - Colour: Burgundy - €19,95 - £14.99
3. Knitted fluffy shawl cardi - Topshop - Colour: Khaki - €59 - £45.00
4. Tang lace flatforms - Topshop - Colour: Black - €34 - £26.00

Stylish:
I really love this outfit. The "New York" sweater/hoodie because is cosy and a bit baggy but with the tight discopants it's really casual and warm. The hat/beanie is optional but I think it fits really well with the rest of the outfit and adds a little bit of colour to the outfit. The flats with the studs on it are cute and casual as well. 
1. New York Long Sleeve Sweat - Topshop - Colour: Black - €38 - £29.00
2. Lily Monochrome Striped Disco Pants - Boohoo.com - €12 - £8.00
3. Eat Dust Bobble Hat by the Ragged Priest - Topshop - Colour: Black - €25 - £18.00
4. Una All Over Studded Slipper - Boohoo.com -  Colour: Black - €15 - £10.00

If you are in a band or if you're a singer and you would like some promotion, feel free to contact me.
E-mail: bandsandblogs@gmail.com
Twitter: @bandsandblogs

Canary Swing

Canary Swing is a band from Gloucestershire. They have just released their debut EP 'The Flight' including the songs 'Second Star to the Right', 'I Know the Feeling', 'With The World On Your Shoulders' and 'Broken Bandwagon'. The EP is definitely worth checking out (and downloading). On their youTubechannel they also have a few covers like '22' (originally by Taylor Swift), 'Best Song Ever' (originally by One Direction) and 'Roar' (originally by Katy Perry). The guys also have a gig planned in their hometown on October 8th so you should definitely go down there to check them out!

Picture credits: Canary Swing

Twitter   Twitter George   Twitter Cory   Twitter Sam   Twitter Harry
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If you are in a band or if you're a singer and you would like some promotion, feel free to contact me.
E-mail: bandsandblogs@gmail.com
Twitter: @bandsandblogs

Tides

Tides is a really talented British band with a very unique sound.
They are going on tour with ‘The Last Carnival’ (in the UK) and ‘Kids Glass Houses’ (in Ireland) this month. It starts in Harlow and ends in Sheffield. The tickets for the show are only £10
They just brought out their debut EP ‘Breathless’, including the songs ‘Tonight’, ‘Insomnia’, ‘Breathless’, ‘Prove Me Wrong’ and ‘Diets & Edits’. It’s available on iTunes worldwide and it’s only £4.49

Picture credits: Tides

Questions & Answers:
I did a quick little Q&A with Aaron Trowbridge, the lead singer in the band.
Q: How would you describe your music?
A: Pop music with hints of an 80’s vibe and a lot to dance and sing to.

Q: You’re going on tour soon, what are you looking forward to the most?
A: Cliché as it sounds: being on the road together. Seeing new places, meeting new people and playing new songs for everyone.

Q: Do you ever get any weird gifts from fans?
A: As of yet nothing weird, no animal skins or shrunken heads ;) But we do get lots of sweets, soft drinks and things like banners and posters which is always really well received.

Q: Who would you like to tour with?
A: Loads of people for all manner of reasons. People like Bruno Mars and Katy Perry might not be obvious once for us but I imagine they’d be great fun on tour and we wouldn’t tired of watching their set each night. Also people like Marina & The Diamonds, Allen Stone or Olly Murs would all be awesome too.

Q: Who is your biggest musical inspiration?
A: That’s a really good question. I think we draw inspiration from such a diverse range of artists we grew up listening to like. The Police, Queen, Toto, Chicago, Lots of pop bands in the 90’s and lots of pop punk bands in our teens!

Q: In a year from now, what do you think/hope you’ll be doing?
A: We hope we’ll be at least double/triple our online following, having released some exciting things we have coming up. Hopefully a very successful EP and some great support tour and we’d be very happy!

Q: Your debut EP ‘Breathless’ is available on iTunes right now. Give one good reason why people should buy it.
A: It’s the audible results of our blood, sweat, tears and triumphs of being in a band together all poured into 5 songs. It’s got to be worth a listen! It’s something we’re very proud of and really hope it gets people’s attention as this is just the beginning.

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If you are in a band or if you're a singer and you would like some promotion, feel free to contact me.

E-mail: bandsandblogs@gmail.com
Twitter: @bandsandblogs

Doll House

Doll House is an American girlgroup based in Los Angeles, California. Katie, Andrea, Kathryn and Callan are 4 girls who don’t only sing, but also dance and entertain. They’re working really hard on their carriers as musicians and that’s paying off cause their first cover – DNA by Little Mix – already had 7k views in the first 24 hours. And right now the song has 11k views already! So it’s fair to say that their fans, the ‘dolls’, form quite a big fanbase. The girls Katie, Andrea, Kathryn and Callan will soon be very, very successful. You will hear a lot more about them!

Picture credits: gregoriophotography

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If you are in a band or if you're a singer and you would like some promotion, feel free to contact me.

E-mail: bandsandblogs@gmail.com
Twitter: @bandsandblogs

Paighton

Paighton is a country-rockband from the UK. They describe their music as “piano-driven”, and it is a good way to describe their catchy songs. Their debut EP ‘Chapter I: Umbrellas Away’ with the songs ‘Somebody’, ‘Live A Lie’ and ‘Umbrellas Away’ is available on iTunes and bandcamp.

Right now the band is supporting “Stake Out” on their ‘Young and Fearless’ tour. The tour has almost come to an end, but they have a few tourdates left: Birmingham on the 3rd of August (tickets are only £7) and London on the 4th of August (tickets are only £6).
In September/October they will be supporting “Lawson” on their ‘Everywhere We Go’ tour through the UK and Ireland together with Room94. After that, they will support Tyler Hilton on his UK tour. It kicks off in Leeds in October and will end in Birmingham in November.
If you want to get tickets to any of their upcoming shows. The links are below.

So they have got a lot planned for the next couple of month. This band is going to be huge!

Picture credits: Paighton

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Twitter   Twitter Andy   Twitter Joe   Twitter Dave   Twitter Pete
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Tickets Stake Out
Tickets LawsonTickets Tyler Hilton

If you are in a band or if you're a singer and you would like some promotion, feel free to contact me.

E-mail: bandsandblogs@gmail.com
Twitter: @bandsandblogs

The Last Carnival

The Last Carnival is a British band.  Quick introduction: You have lead singer Russell (his younger brother) drummer Adam, and their friends; Mike (bass/vocals), Kieran (keyboard/vocals) and Justin (guitar).

In 2012 they did two tours across the UK and Ireland, and now they’re supporting Room94 on their tour until the end of this month. In September-October they will be touring across the UK with their own headlining show. Tickets for Room94’s tour are £7 and tickets for their headlining shows are only £6! So go grab a pair of tickets to see The Last Carnival in a town near you!
Their single ‘Cadillac’ is out now on iTunes. It’s a very catchy song with a good beat. You can also watch their new single ‘Luisa Rey’ on YouTube!

Picture credits: The Last Carnival
From left to right: Mike, Adam, Russell, Kieran, Justin

Questions & Answers:
I had the opportunity to interview the drummer of The Last Carnival, Adam Williams.

Q: How would you describe your music?

A: Party rock ‘n roll.

Q: How is it to be on tour with Room94?
A: It’s been great fun so far! The shows have all been packed and the guys are such nice people.

Q: What is the best thing about being on tour?
A: There’s nothing better than meeting fans after shows and seeing what effect our music has on them. We’ve been lucky enough to meet some amazing people who we hope to keep in touch with throughout our journey!

Q: What kind of people come to see you at your gigs?

A: All sorts! It’s a real compliment to see different types of people who like our music. I think that music now – more than ever – is being enjoyed by everyone and genres seem less important to everyone.

Q: What is the weirdest gift a fan got you?
A: I wouldn’t say it’s weird, but we get SO many sweets! *thank you*

Q: What is the best thing about you fans, the ‘Carnie Army’?

A: Their love and continued support at each show. The Carnie Army is growing and it’s amazing to welcome in new members across the country and beyond!

Q: Why should people buy your music and come out to see you live?

A: If you’re into live music, into guitars, into having a good time, come party with us! And why should people but our music? So we can make more!

So ehm… Go out to their shows, buy their single on iTunes and give them sweets ;)

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Twitter   Twitter Adam   Twitter Justin   Twitter Kieran   Twitter Mike   Twitter Russell
Cadillac on iTunes

If you are in a band or if you're a singer and you would like some promotion, feel free to contact me.
E-mail: bandsandblogs@gmail.com
Twitter: @bandsandblogs

Only The Young

Picture credit: Only The Young

Only The Young also known as OTY are a new British pop group. Parisa, Betsy-Blue, Mikey and Charlie are all very talented singers who also play a few instruments. Even though they haven’t been together for a long time, they have performed at a few festivals with The Wanted, The Vamps and McFly – which is of course a massive deal for a new, upcoming band. They do covers, but they’re also working really hard on their original tracks. On their YouTube channel they have filmed a video-diary, so if you want to get to know the band a bit better you should check it out!

OTYwebsite
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Twitter Twitter Betsy Twitter Mikey Twitter Parisa Twitter Charlie

If you are a band or a singer and you would like some promotion, feel free to contact me.
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