Remembered My Password!

Wow. It has been such a long time since I posted on this and so much has changed since then. I really used to enjoy writing it but it seems 'adulting' quickly got in the way... But here goes nothing.

SUMMER SONGS FOR A HAPPY 2017. 

1) SOOM T - BOOM SHIVA

If I were to be a musical artist I'd be Soom T. She mixes Asian influences from classical folk to bhangra with reggae and hip hop. She can rap with the best of them and the cherry on the top? She has an awesome Scottish accent. I've not seen her perform live except for an appearance on the odd YouTube video but I have asked her to perform in Manchester at some point in the future and she said she would! The album 'Ode to a Carrot' is a must for the summer months and you can find the whole thing online.

2) DARK DARK DARK - IN YOUR DREAMS 

I heard this song for the first time and was instantly hooked. It was literally on repeat for days and it's the kind of song that can change with your mood from making you dance like a crazy person to a contemplative journey on a train. Dark Dark Dark are an American folk band - using all of my favourite instruments including the accordion! I'll be honest I'd never heard of them until I started to watch the BBC drama 'Thirteen' about a girl that was kidnapped as a teenager and her escape from her captor. If you haven't seen the series you really should give it a watch. It's very good but I can say the ending was fairly disappointing.

3) VALERIE JUNE - PUSHING AGAINST A STONE

What a gorgeous voice Valerie has. It's a cross between country and soul. This album is one of my current favourites. I don't think I've ever heard an American artist with such a distinctive voice for a very long time. The whole album is worth a listen and if this title track doesn't inspire you to do that you and I can no longer be friends...

4) SHOCKING BLUE - LOVE BUZZ

If you are feeling in a bit of a slinky mood the original version of Love Buzz is the song you must listen to. Obviously the cover by Nirvana is amazing and it was only on a trip down grungy memory lane that I came across the original. It is so of it's time... basically a mad 60's trip. It's been sampled by so many people including The Prodigy that you feel like you know it anyway.

 

5) TANYA STEVENS - IT'S A PITY

I heard this on one of the Pirate Reggae Radio Stations I sometimes tune into. You honestly find some amazing stuff on the wireless if you ride the dial for a bit. I know people don't really do it these days with so much music on your laptops and phones but there are some gems that you will only find if you are introduced to them by DJ's who really love what they do. This song is great to dance around to but it also makes me laugh lyrically.



So obviously this is the female artist summer edition! I promise it was not intentional! But I hope you enjoy this long overdue post! xx

The Blues Revival...

JACKSON C. FRANK. 

It's probably not the kind of music you should start your year listening to but most of you know I have a strong appreciation for musical storytelling, especially when there is a sad story to tell. The story of Mr Frank is quite an extraordinary one.... 

His life was as tragic as any bluesman, his songs laced with melancholy and simplistic honesty. Whilst researching him I found that there had been many dark turns of fate which brought to life his lyrical genius.  Through his misfortune his talent was born, he learnt how to play the guitar after being badly burned in a school fire. Following a substantial compensation settlement he left America in 1965, for less sunnier climes here in the UK. 

He arrived in the midst of the British folk revival where he influenced, and was influenced by an impressive list of musicians including Paul Simon (who produced Mr Frank's first and only album.) Upon trying to record his second album he developed writer's block, with money running low he returned to the USA. Along this journey he married a former fashion model and lost his son to cystic fibrosis. 

What followed was a rapid downwards spiral - childhood scars burned, disappointment and mourning wept, a shot to the eye left him blind, homelessness on the cold streets of New York ensued and all roads led to mental illness.

In the early 90's - Jim Abbott- an admirer of Frank's work tried to help him record a new album but the songs they cut were not the glorious return to form either of them had expected. His life experiences had wore thin the voice that made him special. Jackson C. Frank died in March 1999 from pneumonia and a heart attack.  

A special album including the 'newer' material he recorded is what I am now in possession of. My favourite 'newer' Frank song would have to be "Halloween Is Black as Night." It has a brilliant despondency and sounds remarkably like a Leonard Cohen song, only much darker and more desperate than Cohen has ever been.   

My favourite songs with a 3 word review: 

1. MARLENE - blissful folk lovesong
2. HERE COME THE BLUES - traditional raw blues
3. PRIMA DONNA OF SWANS - beautiful lyrical imagery

FOREVER 21 (to open in the UK!)

Okay, so I may be 22 but the American cross between Primark and Topshop aka Forever 21 is officially due to open it's flagship store, in my home-town - BIRMINGHAM. The store will open in literally a week, there are banners and signs all over the Bullring and the famous silver sign is already easy to catch.

Situated next to the High Street competitors of Topshop and River Island - I have a slight suspicion that Forever 21 might just be in the running to pip them both to the post of the best High Street store for 2011. However, it now all comes down to a question of pricing and I will obviously be giving you the low down once I have purchased some goods! I mean I still haven't spent my birthday money... so I know where that will be spent now!

I know I must sound like a hyperactive child right but I have never been so excited (okay that is a lie! - but I am VERY excited!) For those of you readers that know me personally you already know about my love of all things American but for those of you that don't - as an American Studies graduate a love for the U.S.A was almost one of the criteria to be selected for the course! Luckily, I got a big tick next to that one!

Whilst doing my degree I even got the opportunity to study in Missouri  for 6 months and everytime I popped into Forever 21, I longed for it to be available in the U.K! and now it will be... I am however, a little surprised that the brand didn't choose to open a store in London? But I don't mind... because it means that yet another shoppers delight is only 15 mins away from me! I will now stop gushing and enjoy some firework celebrations! Happy Bonfire Night! xxx