Albums That I Have Been Loving.

What are some of your current favorites? Leave a comment down below!

-Rachel  

Saturday Night Playlist!

Hey guys,

It's Saturday night and I wanted to let you guys hear one of my mixes! I have a 8tracks account (surprise, surprise) and it's high time that I start sharing. 

Becky | Be Your Own Pet

When You Were Young | The Killers

C'Mon, C'Mon | The Von Bondies

Electric Feel | MGMT

Come On, Let's Go | Ritchie Valens

For The One | Waters

Lasso | Pheonix

Pick Up The Phone | Dragonette

Wild World | Me First & The Gimme Gimmes

The End Has No End | The Strokes

Disappear | Motion City Soundtrack

Pork And Beans | Weezer

Fits & Dizzyspells | Andrew Bird

How Come You Never Go There | Feist

Bonus: Choose You | Manchester Orchestra 

Here is the link to my 8tracks! Follow me! :)

8TRACKS

I hope you liked my playlist! Leave any comments or suggestions down below!

-Rachel 

Those Days So Joyfully = The Valley Album Review!

Hey, hi, hey. Welcome to my second album review! The Valley by Eisley. Originating from Tyler, Texas this band has been playing indie/twee pop music since the late 90's. This album was their third full-length release in March of 2011. This album was called the divorced album because of the lyrical content that touched on all three girl's past relationships. Here are four songs you should listen to first!

The Valley

Smarter

Watch It Die

Sad

Oxygen Mask

Better Love

I Wish

Kind

Mr. Moon

Please

Ambulance

"Smarter" Normally, Eisley has a distinct sounds. Stacy, Sherri, and sometimes Chauntelle sing and harmonize over piano and guitar. With this song, you are hit with something a bit different. Instead of simple chords, there is heavy sound that compliments the lyrics. I think that this track really branches out on sound when it comes to Eisley. They are more to the point when it comes to the lyrics and it works well with the vibe of this song. 

"Oxygen Mask" Starting out sweet as usual is Stacy with this track. The song as a whole is very beautifully written with sad lyrics talking about the outs of a relationship. The piano leads the music with a strong string section all throughout the track. What I enjoyed about this song is that it's catchy but has chorus that speaks to the listener.

"Mr. Moon"  This is one the most honest tracks from this album, in my opinion. Sherri is straight up talking about her previous relationship and how she was heart broken. I loved how it started with spook-esque keyboard tones. It really works with the minimalist cymbals. Even though this song is very honest and open, I love that it turns positive when Sherri sings about her sisters. She looks at the silver lining, and it is executed well.

"Ambulance"  This song is beautiful. It would be impossible to end this post without saying something about this track. The band plays this song almost every show and it's a crowd favorite. I understand why. Stacy also just sings reality. It's pretty much piano for most of the song until the chorus where it builds up. Haunting. Honest. Very real. 

As a whole, I would give this album a 4.5/5 stars. The band really worked on bringing the topics of this album to the surface. I feel that each track is another layer upon layer until the end where it all comes out for the listener to realize. The end track was brilliant. It ended perfectly. Compared to their last album, Combinations, this album shows how much they have grown as musicians, song writers, and people. Here are links to buy their album:

AMAZON

BAND SITE

I hope you enjoyed my review of The Valley! Please leave any comments down below!

S'laters!

-Rachel 

I Give It To The Ocean = Cope Album Review!

 So, I want to start off my reviews with an album that I am slowly falling in love with. 

Cope by Manchester Orchestra. These guys are from Atlanta and have been really been making their mark in indie/alt rock. They are simply amazing and bring a new approach to a genre that so many bands have claimed as their own. This album came out in January of 2014. Instead of a track-by-track, I am going to pick songs and explain their significance. 

Top Notch

Choose You

Girl Harbor

The Mansion

The Ocean

Every Stone

All That I Really Wanted

Trees

Indentions

See It Again

Cope

"Choose You" This track has such heavy instrumentation from the start, and it doesn't let up. This song's lyrics are as heavy as the music itself with the hint of something sinister underneath the metaphors and Christian phrases. I also believe that Manchester did a great job of making such a heavy laden song catchy and easy to sing a long to. The pre-chorus and chorus just makes the song flow very well. What I like about this song is that it makes you think. It's catchy, of course, but I also want to research the lyrics and understand what Hull is singing about.

"Girl Harbor"  Another song with Christian undertones. This song seems to lean towards trying to understand someone who is very complex and arrogant. Hull sings about how what he says doesn't help the problem or situation. The instrumentation is again, harsh, but it is more piano and guitar driven unlike Choose You. I like this song because of the chorus and that the lyrics are relatable. 

"The Ocean" Of course this would be my last track to review! With the lyric from the title of this post, The Ocean makes me like Cope more and more. This track has a great chorus, significant lyrics, and grandiose music to go with that. It's a track that requires very few listens to; you will be singing a long in no time. I like this song specifically because of it's harsh chorus. It's exactly what you need. Listen to it.

Overall, I give this album 4/5 stars. It well written album that has interesting layers in it after you are hit with the raucousness of it. The guitar and drums lead the way with the lyrics close behind. I would have liked to hear more versatility from this band, because in the past, they have experimented with syncopation and different sounds. Even though this album doesn't really go into that, it's a great rock album. The guys have done it again.

You can buy the album here:

AMAZON

BAND SITE

I hope you enjoyed reading my first review! Leave all comments/questions/concerns/rants down below! 

-Rachel

First!

Hey there,

This will be my music blog where I post band interviews, reviews, news, and anything related to music and culture! I am so stoked to start this, and it's going to be amazing sharing my crazy ideas with you!

So, I think that this will be stretching beyond just music and reaching into different types of creativity.  Branching out is good.

Let's get this started.

-Rachel