My 2015 in Music

Contrary to what my ‘recently played’ would lead you to believe, I listened to more than just that Justin Bieber album last year. Here’s a small round-up of some of the best things I heard in 2015:

The record pictured is Grimes – Art Angels, a release from the closing months of the year but one that basically blew everything that came before it out of the water. It’s an obvious choice to include here, having featured in the end-of-year list of every music magazine ever, but it is easily one of my favourite albums of the whole decade. Art Angels is a perfect pop record, but also so much more than a pop record; it has obviously catchy hits (Flesh Without Blood, Realiti), but maybe more remarkable is the true originality of it. It is just the right amount of ‘weird’; I think that the more unconventional sounds (which run throughout the album, but are especially prominent in songs like Scream, Venus Fly and intro to the album laughing and not being normal) really show off the full range of Grimes’ currently unparalleled creativity and genius as a producer and artist.

Sheer Mag in London

Moving from a bit pop to a bit punk, two of my favourite records of the year came in the form of Royal Headache – High and Sheer Mag – II. High is one of those albums that can make you feel almost painfully nostalgic, even if you’ve only just heard it. Royal Headache are a garage-punk band from Australia, and High is an album full of heartfelt anthems – and I’m not just using anthems as a synonym for ‘songs’, they really are anthems. The title track High is a heart-swelling love (or love-sick) song, Garbage is delectably angry (YOU’RE NOT PUNK, YOU’RE JUST SCUM / YOU BELONG IN THE GARBAGE, YOU BELONG IN THE TRASH) and more acoustic Carolina shows that Royal Headache can do soft too. What makes Royal Headache stand out, imho, is the fact that vocalist Shogan can properly properly sing, and belts out every lyric with real soul.

Sheer Mag‘s latest EP ‘II‘ just makes me want to dance, and dance I did. They came over to the UK in November and I managed to catch them 3 times within a week, which might seem a little excessive but they’re just so FUN. II‘s lyrics are politicised and pissed off, and the choruses intensely catchy. I dare you to listen to Fan the Flames once and not immediately listen to it another 20 times. Both live and on record, Sheer Mag are a band with the sort of energy I’ve only seen matched this year by the likes of Shannon and the Clams and The Number Ones, and singer Tina Halladay’s powerful powerful voice and presence don’t falter even a little bit.

Chain of Flowers in Manchester

Nai Harvest in Manchester

I’m not forgetting our ~home grown~ talent here. My best British releases were Sievehead – Into the Blue (Sheffield punk), Chain of Flowers – Chain of Flowers (post-punk / a bit goth from Cardiff), Nai Harvest – Hairball (sort of fuzzy indie punk from Sheffield / Manchester – ICYMI I interviewed them here).

Liss in London

If you don’t like guitar music, I have really enjoyed R&B releases Abra – Rose and Kehlani – You Should Be Here. Other 2015 albums that need mentioning but haven’t fit neatly into the structure of this article are: G.L.O.S.S – Demo, Girlpool – Before the World Was Big (check out my interview with Girlpool here) Purity Ring – Another Eternity (I talked about all three of these artists in this post about girl bands), Sufjan Stevens – Carrie & Lowell, Molly Nilsson – Zenith, Dame – Charm School, Roman à Clef – Abandonware, Communions – Communions, and of course the magnificent Justin Bieber – Purpose. Young new Danish band Liss (pictured above) don’t have an album yet, but put out what was easily one of the best songs of the year in Try (and were easily one of the best bands I saw live too).

Let me know if you’re also a fan of any of these releases, have discovered something new via this post, or if you have any recommendations I’d love to hear them!

January 5, 2016 TAGS: music BY: hannahlouisef

Music

Interview: Girlpool on Music and Fashion

Girlpool is Cleo Tucker and Harmony Tividad, a two-piece (have you noticed I seem to exclusively interview two-piece bands?) from Los Angeles, now living in Philadelphia. They first appeared on my blog earlier this year in a post about girl bands after I had seen them play and became instantly quite obsessed; you’ll be pleased to hear that I have since become a fully fledged fan. Their newest record, Before The World Was Big, came out on Wichita this summer and, in my interpretation, is an ode to childhood and nostalgia. For the most part it feels less angry than their debut self-titled EP, but hasn’t lost the rawness and socially progressive lyrical content that attracted me to Girlpool in the first place. Check out the fiercely catchy title track and accompanying (very cute) music video below.

Having become sufficiently excited to see Girlpool play again, last week I went down to Manchester’s Deaf Institute for their gig and to have a chat about music, fashion, and snacks:

You’ve actually been to the UK three times this year, what do you like so much about playing here? If you do like it that is?

Cleo: we do like it! Our label was originally based here so they have a strong understanding of what shows are cool and where to play, and what’s going on.

And what do you like about being here?

Cleo: I’ve always really loved the UK and Europe, it’s a fascinating place to me growing up so far. I think everything is different so it’s kind of cool to jump into a totally different world. It’s also fun to exercise those parts of yourself that you work on so far away, and exercise things that are so close to yourself, and yet to be in a space that’s the furthest you could possibly be from familiarity. It’s an interesting juxtaposition to live inside of!
Harmony: I feel like I learn more about my culture coming here, in a weird way, because it’s like ‘oh I didn’t realise that was part of my DNA that isn’t just human, it’s only the United States’. That’s interesting, and also visually it’s so different from America. Like the architecture and the way things are put together and placed; I feel like every culture has a certain way they shape things, and the visual exploration of that feeling is interesting. Your environment affects you so much that perceiving a different world visually affects internal dialogue, even.

For sure, especially being from somewhere as far away as L.A. You recently moved to Philly too, how has that been?

Harmony: it’s been cool!
Cleo: it was sort of similar to the feeling of coming here, entering a space and environment that we’ve never really lived inside of. It’s fun! Right now and for a long time our eyes have been really wide, and with moving we have been soaking up loads of new feelings too.

So your new record, Before the World Was Big, is really great! Can you tell us a bit about it? Are you happy with it?

Harmony: we both feel really good about the record, we feel like it really hones in on a moment in our lives and represents a perspective and a feeling or idea that we both shared and explored together, and it’s really powerful and cool to put it out into the world. It feels really cool!
Cleo: yeah we’re both proud of it and feel close to it still, we love it a lot.

Apart from music, what other creative things are you guys into?

Cleo: pretty much everything! We both draw, I take photos, and we love making videos.
Harmony: yeah, and just thinking about ideas…..

You both have a cool, distinctive style. What, if anything, do you think inspires that?

Cleo: I like a lot of certain colours, like bright colours and juxtaposition and contrast… except right now I’m not wearing that haha. I don’t think I consciously have any style icons, though.
Harmony: I remember when I was like 13, and Say Yes by Elliott Smith was playing, and I was just like ‘I want to dress like this song today’. I can’t remember what I ended up wearing! I think that the things I like inspire what I wear, but I don’t know what they are exactly.

Do you think that fashion and music influences cross over?

Cleo: I don’t know, it’s strange that image is involved at all, but I guess because there is performance there are visual representations. It’s strange because when you’re sitting writing a song you don’t think about that.
Harmony: yeah you’re like wearing sweat pants or your PJs and eating snacks!

So do snacks inspire the music?

Harmony: totally, peanut butter crackers.
Cleo: yeah, and coffee!

What is your tour-drobe like? It must be a really annoying thing to have to pack for a tour, so how does that go down? What are your essentials?

Cleo: it’s very weather dependant. We came from the east coast which right now is about a million degrees, so we packed warmer clothes for here. And you’ve always got to bring that pair of pants that you really love.
Harmony: and a good pair of sneakers, and some nice underwear that are really comfy. And good socks! We’re very into socks.
Cleo: really your tour-drobe evolves as you go, I haven’t actually been to a shop in Manchester yet but we did a lot of shopping in London!
Harmony: yeah we went to Brick Lane, and have been to a lot of charity shops and stuff. And there was a lot of cool stuff at End of the Road Festival too!

Thanks so much for chatting to me!

You can find Girlpool on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, and pick up Before the World Was Big at your local record store or on iTunes.

*words by Hannah Farrington*

*photos by Hannah Farrington and Ben Thompson*

September 18, 2015 TAGS: interview, music BY: hannahlouisef

Music

Interview: Slow Club – on Music and Fashion

Slow Club have been around for quite a while. Almost ten years, in fact. A favourite of the self-proclaimed ‘indie kids’ in secondary school (in my 2005-2010 era at any rate), they have stood the test of time and continue to put out music that is both interesting and (imo) just really nice to listen to. Originally hailing from Sheffield (just like the last band I interviewed, Nai Harvest), Charles and Becca now live in London. I caught up with them at a Disaronno Terrace event in Manchester, and had a chat with Charles about Slow Club past, present and future, the creative process, and of course clothes.

Your last record, Complete Surrender, came out just over a year ago – what have you been up to?

We were touring quite a lot, until springtime, and since then we’ve just been writing. We’re starting the next record next week, so we’ve just been trying to write loads of tunes.

Becca has her solo project, selfesteemselfesteem, what’s going on with that? Are you working on anything yourself?

She’s doing that, she’s started a record, and I’ve started another band at the beginning of the year called Chamber Music. My main thing is trying to write the Slow Club record, still.

As far as bands with DIY roots go, you guys have been around for quite a while now and I think that’s aspirational for anyone trying to make their way as a creative of any sort. How have you managed to not fall out of love with what you do?

I guess just trying to push yourself, and not do the same thing every time. We’ve always been conscious of trying to make a record that’s different to the last one, purely to keep ourselves entertained. I guess the differences between records are a reflection of what we’re listening to at the time, and where we’re at with our lives.

When I’m writing I always try to do something else as well, something creative but not songs, so they feed off each other. For our first two records I was painting a lot, and for the last record and this record I enrolled at St Martin’s last year to do a writing thing, so I’ve been using that as a springboard. I find if I’m doing something like that, I write loads and loads more music as well. It’s like being fit, if you only write a song once a month, when you come to do it it’s going to be difficult, but if you do little and often you’re able to communicate your ideas a lot more easily. I kind of treat those other creative activities like, say if you were making a dress, the bust that you put it on – I treat the other activities as a framework to build writing songs on. You could just write the same song over and over again, but if we stopped tomorrow, I wouldn’t want to look back on what we’ve done and think we could’ve put more work in.

That’s really interesting, I definitely find it helpful to have to have more than one thing going on at once too. You live in London now, do you still keep up with the DIY scene in Sheffield and the north? Any names to watch?

A lot of our friends are in bands back up north and in Sheffield. We’re good friends with Seize the Chair, and I guess those guys in Nai Harvest and Best Friends are all part of the same group. I’ve seen them a few times and I really like it, I like the link between skate culture and music and you often end up with really interesting stuff. If you move away from a place you do get disconnected from that, you kind of have to be there to appreciate it, but whenever I go back I always try to see stuff.

Onto fashion… how important is ‘aesthetic’ to you as a band?

I think if you asked Becca this question, you’d get a totally different answer! It’s nice to have some sort of unity on that front, we always try it or there’s some sort of vague attempt to do it, but then three days into the tour we just want to wear something comfy.

Where do you get your clothes from? What are you wearing right now?

Anywhere really! Right now – I got some new Dr Martens today, and I’ve actually really got into dying clothes recently. This shirt was light blue last week, so I got a sachet of dark blue and black dye and I’ve just been dying a load of clothes.

I had this last question for Becca, but she couldn’t make it here, so maybe you can help. I wanted to ask if she finds that as a “””girl in a band”””, there’s any more pressure on her to look a certain way or at least to be concerned with fashion? Do you notice that her experience is different to yours?

Yeah, it’s still a pretty male dominated industry. I don’t think there really should be a distinction at all. She shouldn’t be a “girl in a band”, she’s just a woman playing music. Some people seem to think that it’s this really incredible thing that a girl is in a band and writes songs, I think it’s a bit of a 70s view to have! I’m sure she does have a different experience than me, but I think she just makes an effort the same as anyone would.

Thanks, Charles!

Catch Slow Club at End of the Road festival next month, and keep up with them on Twitter and Facebook.

Words and photos by Hannah Farrington

August 15, 2015 TAGS: interview, music BY: hannahlouisef

Life Music

H&M Pop-Up Party

I’ve found myself spending a lot of Thursdays in that London lately (and will be spending a lot more there very soon!!). Most recently, I popped down to spend the day with Zoe eating, browsing record stores, eating again, scouting out little spots to take pictures of ourselves (obviously, for our sins we are bloggers after all), and then partying with H&M in the evening.

I told you about this particular event last week, and it didn’t disappoint! Annie Oh played all the hits (all of them) from the minute the doors opened, and we had a blast sipping our free drinks and browsing the new H&M Divided collection. If you were lucky enough to bag yourself a free guestlist spot, you’ll have seen that H&M switched up the VM of the pop-up to feature 3 mannequins all in black with waist length plaits and green lipstick, and now I want to dye my hair black and (maybe) wear green lipstick.

If you missed out this time, you can sign up for tickets to the remaining H&M pop-up parties (13/08, 20/08, 27/08, 02/09) on Noisey.

*this post is in collaboration with H&M*

August 13, 2015 TAGS: lifestyle, music BY: hannahlouisef

Music

H&M Divided Pop-Up Summer Parties

I am a fashion blogger, roughly speaking, but I really really really love (and enjoy writing about, and spend all my free time and money on) music. I do think that the worlds of music and fashion are inextricably linked to a degree, but it’s not that often that I get the chance to write about them together. With that in mind it is with great excitement that I’m working with H&M again on another music-focused project.

H&M has been really impressive (imo) in its efforts to create events which bring together both music and fashion, from seeking out and working with new, up and coming artists to sponsoring Coachella. Now, in collaboration with Noisey, they’re hosting six parties in a pop up store in East London in celebration of their new Divided collection. Buy good clothes, drink for free (yes you read that correctly), and dance; what more could you possibly want from a Thursday night? Everyone who attends is in with a chance of winning a £200 H&M voucher, too. Catch me there on August 6th from 7-9pm (where Annie Oh will be DJing).

For more info and to apply for the free guestlist go here, and remember to get down early to avoid disapointment as it’s first come first served!

*this post is in collaboration with H&M*

July 30, 2015 TAGS: music BY: hannahlouisef

Music

Nai Harvest – on music and fashion

A chat about music and fashion with Nai Harvest…

*words by Hannah Farrington / photos by Toni Power and Hannah Farrington*

Nai Harvest is Ben Thompson (vocals and guitar) and Lew Currie (drums). They are a two-piece from Sheffield whose sound (in very brief summary) has grown from roots in twiddly emo to a sort of fuzzy indie punk that music media seems to find difficult to describe. Whichever adjective you prefer, their new record Hairball is really, really good; from the very first line ‘I wanna know what the weather’s like in your mind’ to energetic title track Hairball. I’ve had the contagious first single Buttercups stuck in my head for months, and dreamy Ocean of Madness is proper ~summer anthem~ material (and my personal favourite song from the album).

It’s out today via Topshelf Records (US), available in the UK/EU here. It’s also now on Spotify if that’s your thing, or you can listen to it here:

Last week I took some fashion advice from Ben(!) and dressed as Nai’s third member, and popped down early to the Manchester show of their Hairball tour (with fellow Sheff band Best Friends) to have a chat about music and fashion, two things that both the boys and I think are inextricably connected to an extent. Check out our interview below, in which the boys reveal that their fashion icons are Mike Skinner and Orlando Weeks, and attempt to describe my style…

How’s tour been?
Ben: it’s been really good, we’ve been with our best friends and had all our friends opening the shows. It’s been really nice to be able to curate a tour and ask people we want to play with to play with us.
Lew: the best tour we’ve done I reckon.

The new record is very sick, what’s your favourite song from it?
Ben: All The Time, it’s really easy to play.
Lew: Melanie.

So you’re both into creating visual art in one way or another (Ben studies at Manchester School of Art and Lew is an illustrator), how important are visuals to you as a band?
Ben: I guess the aesthetic of a band is quite important, obviously music is the most important but you’ve got to have a clear direction visually.
Lew: I think it’s 50/50, you’ve got to stand out these days pal.
Ben: yeah, if your record covers are ugly and your t-shirts aren’t nice then no-one’s gonna buy them, regardless of how good the songs are – a sad but true fact! And as we’re both artists it’s kind of important to have an art vibe with Nai Harvest as well.

Which do you prefer to create then, art or music?
Ben: I actually prefer music these days, art is becoming more and more stressful as time goes on.
Lew: yeah same, I wouldn’t say art is a job but it’s more that way than music.
Ben: me too art is becoming more a job and I have to think about it more, whereas music comes really naturally.

And Lew quickly tell us about the book you’ve just done?
Lew: I basically decided to do a book because I got bored of doing conceptual work. I wanted to draw what I know and I really like football. It’s basically a collection of moments in my style.
*check out Lew’s Tumblr for his illustrations, and pick up his book via Snöar Press if you’re into that*

Ben: I’m wearing a £3 stripy box t-shirt I got off Etsy, some Levi’s, some Umbro socks and some Converse.

Lew: I’m wearing a Field Jersey, apparently, which I got from an American thrift store for $2, a Niagara Falls t-shirt which I didn’t get from Niagara Falls, some green cords from TK Maxx and some Reebok Classics.

Hannah: Boden white denim jacket*, Motel striped ringer tee, ASOS high waist wide leg jeans*, Converse*.

Where do you get your clothes generally?
Ben: off Etsy or eBay, or just general charity shops. There’s a really good one near where I live in Withington, shout out to Cancer Research UK.
Lew: pretty much the same, charity shops and my dad actually.

Out of all the current UK bands in this scene you two have one of the most distinct aesthetics, has this ever been a conscious thing?
Ben: not at all! It’s weird because people in America always ask if we’re brothers even though we don’t physically look alike. I think it’s because we look sort of coordinated, but it has actually never been intentional.

This is my least favourite question that I get asked as a blogger; can you describe your style?
Ben: my style is kinda lazy, baggy and comfortable. I don’t like anything to fit properly.
Lew: the bigger the better! Pretty much the same, but a bit more sporty.

Can you describe my style?
Lew: fire emoji.
Ben: haha fiery fashion babe. I don’t know, it’s like London Fashion Week in Manchester casual.
(lmao)

Ok cool I’m putting that in my bio. Any fashion influences or icons?
Ben: Orlando Weeks from The Macabees, still swag after all these years. He brought white trainers and sick bowl cuts into rock and roll, legend.
Lew: Mike Skinner I reckon, hard as fuck.

What about other bands you know, who else dresses great?
Ben: Best Friends probably.
Lew: Magic Gang.
Ben: yeah they’re pretty swag… like Jack Wills punk, yacht punk, gone on a boat but also in a punk band…
Lew: and Mahogany!
Ben: Hetty from Night Flowers always dresses really Vogue, like really long coats and heels, she always looks very put-together. And when we saw Alvvays, Molly had the coolest stripy t-shirt on I’ve ever seen, with a red Mustang and white trainers. She was dressed like a boy and it looked so sick!

Mahogany opened up for Nai Harvest – listen to and download their debut EP ‘Drowsy’ here. Melancholy emo / indie from Manchester, if you’re a Tigers Jaw fan you’ll love this.

And your favourite bands, musically and/or visually?
Lew: I’m gonna say The Streets, musically and visually it works together.
Ben: yeah The Streets is a good one he’s got that scally thing on lock. Mac De Marco’s got a pretty good look on the go with the whole gap teeth, cap, stoner-but-not-actually-a-stoner vibe, dungarees and stuff… I reckon he’d be so fun to hang out with.
Lew: at the moment musically it’s Cymbals Eat Guitars.
Ben: yeah and the new Waxahatchee record is amazing, and I can’t wait for the show.

Nice, and finally what can we expect from you in the next year?
Ben: just loads more live shows, probably a cool support tour, and back to the states in October.

Find Nai Harvest on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Tumblr, see more of my music posts here.

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April 28, 2015 TAGS: interview, music, Nai Harvest BY: hannahlouisef

Music

Girl Bands You Should Check Out

(not an actual girl band, but probably should be)

As a blogger, I’m involved in an industry built on and dominated by inspiring, independent and successful young women, and that is honestly so exciting to me. The phenomenal things that some of my friends are achieving literally make my heart swell. By stark contrast, the increased level of outrage at the recent announcement of Reading and Leeds Festival’s almost exclusively male line-up (and then the following slow realisation that it isn’t just R&L – Download features nine bands including women and Slam Dunk has just one act with a female member) has reminded me just how bleak the gender (as well as race, sexual orientation and identity) equality situation is in other scenes which I consider myself a part of.

In some respects I’m conflicted about even making this post because the gender of band members really shouldn’t be a thing of note, and certainly not a defining factor of that band, but at the same time it’s important to recognise the women who manage to go against the generally sexist grain of the music industry as a whole. If we talk about girl bands more, the hope is that more girls will feel inspired and confident enough to start new girl bands (I certainly wish I had this sort of confidence in myself), and there will be less and less of an excuse for the sort of abysmally uneven gender balance on festival line-ups of today. Sidebar: for an interesting read on sexism and the music industry (and more importantly what to do and what is already being done about it) I’d recommend this Noisey article. I’m also going to see Kim Gordon (Sonic Youth) talk about her new book Girl In A Band this week which I’m very excited about, and I’m curious as to whether she’ll provide me with a new angle on women in music – I’ll probably be tweeting about it @hannahlouisef.

In the meantime, I thought it fitting to share some appreciation for my favourite all-girl or girl-fronted current band from a variety of genres. Happy listening – let me know if you’re into any of these bands, or have found something new!

Girlpool – Manchester, February 2015 (photo by me)

Girlpool

I mention Girlpool first as I saw them play in Manchester recently – I had listened to them before but admittedly only in brief, and I went along to the show with a friend who had a spare ticket. I was so impressed! It’s so great to go to a show without knowing what to expect and have a good experience – the L.A. duo (both of whom are under the age of 20, I believe) played to a very full basement of Manchester’s Soup Kitchen and left everyone happy and gushing about how fab they were. They are an unapologetically raw and noisy two piece; equal parts sweet/angry with sometimes harmonised vocals and no need for a drummer. They achieve, both musically and lyrically, vulnerability and a sense of genuineness that I really respect.

Listen to:
Blah Blah Blah
Chinatown

Alvvays – Manchester, January 2015 (photo by me)

Alvvays

This girl-fronted band is actually on the Reading and Leeds lineup, hurrah! Perfect indie pop that makes me think of summer whenever I listen to their self titled LP, no matter what the weather is like outside. I was lucky enough to watch Alvvays (pronounced like ‘always’) play at Manchester’s Deaf Institute earlier this year; they were record-perfect and I smiled the whole way through.

Listen to:
Party Police
Marry Me, Archie

G.L.O.S.S

This is one FFO hardcore/punk. If you haven’t already heard of G.L.O.S.S (Girls Living Outside Society’s Shit), they are a fairly new band from Olympia, Washington made up of trans-women/femmes/queers who are sick of punk catering exclusively to white boys. ‘I DON’T REMEMBER INVITING YOUR WORDS / I DON’T REMEMBER INVITING YOUR GAZE / I’D NEVER ASK YOUR OPINION OF SHIT! / MY BODY / MY RULES / GET ON WITH IT’ – from Targets Of Men. They have channeled anger and intelligence into a powerful and cutting demo which has kicked up quite the storm; I don’t think I’ve seen it posted online anywhere without the tagline ‘best demo of the year so far’. In the context of this post, it’s very cool to see something made by trans* women being widely embraced in hardcore and punk across both the US and the UK (and probably elsewhere too) – I hope this sets a precedent.

Listen to:
Outcast Stomp
…actually just listen to the whole thing

Photos by Kirill Smolyakov, Ben T Mainwaring

Artefact

Artefact is a very new girl-fronted band from South Wales. They just put out a demo via Bandcamp featuring seven(!) brooding goth-y, post-punk-y songs, which make me want to wear black dresses with bell sleeves and dance around a bit, and I am so into Hannah’s Siouxsie Sioux esque vocals. You can listen to and download the demo for free or with a donation on their Bandcamp.

Listen to:
Morrigan
Poison

Honeyblood

This Scottish scuzzy indie pop duo is going from strength to strength at the moment. Their 2014 self-titled full length (listen to and download on their Bandcamp) is really great – even when shouting ‘I will hate you forever! Scum bag sleaze! Slime-ball grease!’ on Super Rat they’re still sweet without being too sickly, and just really very nice to listen to. I’m particularly obsessed with the extremely Scottish pronunciation of ‘another fucking bruise, this one looks just like a rose’ in closing track Braid Burn Valley. I imagine the record would make the perfect soundtrack to a warm summer drive down roads lined by corn fields. I hope to catch Honeyblood at Dot To Dot festival in Manchester later this year.

Listen to:
Biro
Fall Forever

Purity Ring

Last but not least is Canadian synth-pop / ‘future-pop’ female/male duo Purity Ring. If you haven’t heard of Purity Ring before you might actually be a little more familiar with them than you think; their song Fineshrine from first LP ‘Shrines’ was used in a Very TV ad, prompting a barrage of ‘very tv ad music’ google searches. That album is quite perfect in my opinion, but they have very recently put out another full length ‘Another Eternity’. I haven’t had enough time to fully digest and figure out what I think of it yet – I love the dreamier songs like Push Pull and sleepy closing track Stillness in Woe but think that the more upbeat like Flood on the Floor (which I imagine would be phenomenal to watch live) are actually more interesting. On early impressions I think I prefer Shrines but that is neither here nor there; you should still listen to this band!

Listen to:
Fineshrine
Flood on the Floor

***

I could go on and on, but if you want more check out A Sunny Day In Glasgow, Adventures, Tropic of Cancer, Grimes, Petal, Warpaint, VUM, Haim, Waxahatchee and to backtrack a little everything on this useful riot grrrl list, and watch The Punk Singer.

March 16, 2015 TAGS: girl bands, music BY: hannahlouisef

Music

Most Profound Pop Lyrics Ever

Who needs philosophers, poets, other literary greats, when you can take much catchier life advice from your favourite pop songs? I’ve taken the time to curate 5 of the most relatable, motivational, and amusing pop lyrics from recent decades for your viewing pleasure, along with some great photos of the ladies responsible for them and some items from H&M’s latest Divided collection that I think they’d love.

but a scrub is checkin’ me

but his game is kinda weak

and I know that he cannot approach me

’cause I’m lookin’ like class

and he’s lookin’ like trash

can’t get with a dead-beat ass

TLC – No Scrubs

This was the first song that came to mind when brainstorming this post. 1) it is hilarious 2) the message is absolutely on point 3) it is an excellent song 4) it includes the phrase ‘his game is kinda weak’. It’s all about being confident in yourself and knowing your worth, and how boys are annoying, and I love it!

Stretch dungarees – H&M Divided, £24.99

Ripped jeans – H&M Divided, £19.99

Patterned leggings – H&M Divided, £7.99

you think we’re just pretty things

you couldn’t be more wrong…

representing all the women, salute, salute

ladies, the time has come, the war has begun

let us stand together

Little Mix – Salute

Little Mix might not be the girl band that first springs to mind when you think of feminism in music, but Salute is purely and simply a girl power anthem. The best part is that it appeals to Little Mix’s predominantly very young fan base and I think that is so exciting, power to Little Mix!!

lemme make this clear

I’m not difficult,

I’m just ‘bout my business

Nicki Minaj – All Things Go

Not strictly speaking pop music, I suppose, but this (as well as many more of Nicki’s lyrics) conveys the very important message that just because a woman is business-smart does not mean that she is difficult, bossy, overbearing, or in any way unfeminine. IMPORTANT!

Checked shirt – H&M Divided, £12.99

pretty hurts

we shine the light on whatever’s worst

perfection is a disease of a nation

Beyoncé – Pretty Hurts

I couldn’t exclude Queen Bey from a post about pop songs. This is a slightly more serious one, starkly accurate and particularly important in an industry obsessed by image, which we are all guilty of being consumed by at times.

Heart print blouse – H&M Divided, £12.99

oh my god look at that face

you look like my next mistake

Taylor Swift – Blank Space

Frankly I could have based this whole post around Tay Swift lyrics – relatable, motivational, emotional, she has the whole lot. I chose this one because 1) it is funny 2) it is astoundingly accurate and 3) I really enjoy the tongue-in-cheek self awareness of it.

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Quite clearly there are many more pop lyrics that would deservedly fit into this post, but I don’t want to keep you all day. Let me know which are your favourites, and if there are any particularly profound pop lyrics you think I have criminally overlooked then I want to know about them!

Words by Hannah Farrington

Photos via Teen.com, Pop Dust, Google images, H&M

*this post is in collaboration with H&M*

February 20, 2015 TAGS: hmdivided, hmlovesmusic, music, pop music BY: hannahlouisef

Fashion Music

Steal Her Style: FKA twigs

I’m absolutely entranced by FKA twigs. After (regretfully) sleeping on her first full length record LP1 for far too long, I finally checked it out by recommendation of many a ‘best of 2014’ list and was instantly drawn in by haunting, almost ethereal vocals and delicate poppy synths. Whilst I am somewhat under-informed about the underground scene from which she has emerged, as a breakthrough artist to the mainstream listener she is clearly something special. I then backtracked to EP1 and EP2, and read up a little on her musical background of growing up listening to punk, and career as a back-up dancer for the likes of Jessie J, and was completely sold!

As great as her music is, visuals are an equally significant part of FKA twigs. Her big doe eyes and bee-stung doll lips are unmistakeable, and the importance of aesthetics and performance are made obvious by twigs’ stunning music videos. I am referring in particular to her most recent for Pedulum, her first self-directed video (although she has clearly played a big role in establishing the artistry of others) which features twigs suspended from a ceiling in various contorted silhouettes – it is difficult to do the piece justice using words, but it is an absolute must-watch. Self-directing allowed twigs to really experiment with and celebrate female sexuality away from the omnipresent male gaze of the music industry, and the result is truly beautiful.

Hole patterned dress – H&M, £24.99

This brings me onto what is really the main point of this post – FKA twigs’ style. She is a sparkling example of how pop star (despite her music being difficult to label, I think it is fair to call twigs a pop star), does not have to mean pink and preppy and can encompass a more (for want of a better word) ~alternative aesthetic. In both her ‘off duty’ and her stage wear, she is unique without being too crazy and ‘out there’ a la Lady Gaga circa 2009; layering is key in many of her looks, and she often wears small independent designers (even things made by her talented friends), as well as a mix of high fashion and high street. I think she strikes the balance between ‘quirky’ and wearable just right, in such a way that means that her style isn’t easy to imitate or replicate exactly (part of her appeal as a really individual artist), but it is definitely possible to pull some inspiration from. I’ve picked out a few things from H&M’s latest Divided collection (pictured above and below) which I think have an FKA twigs vibe about them – wear them together or mix with vintage to nail her eclectic style.

Wear this Divided outfit with an oversized jacket, layered necklaces, sunglasses, lace up boots (and Robert Pattinson on your arm)

Images via fkatwigsfashionstyle, ellookdelasfamosas, Daily Mail, H&M

Words by Hannah Farrington

**this post is in collaboration with H&M**

February 17, 2015 TAGS: celeb, fashion, FKA twigs, FKA twigs style, hmdivided, hmlovesmusic, music BY: hannahlouisef

Life Music

My 2014 in Live Music

With my friends Toni and Hannah at Title Fight in Antwerp, May 2014

(unknown and slightly odd source)

I want to write more about music on my blog but I’m in an awkward position where (I imagine that) almost no-one who reads my blog cares what music I’m into, and almost no-one who is involved in the same sort of music scene as I am cares what I think about it. Nevertheless, inspired a little by Zoe and Lily‘s ‘soundtrack to my life’ YouTube tag, I’ve decided to do it anyway as it is what I spend around half my life preoccupied with. Now, it is very difficult to write about a show/gig/concert/etc, without sounding embarrassing, so I’m going to try to keep each little section short and sweet and keep my adjective usage to the bare minimum. I hope this interests at least a few of you, and please let me know if you’d like to see similar in the future!

For me, live music in 2014 has largely been a year dominated by reunions and old favourites. Two of my stand out shows of the year were Neutral Milk Hotel and Mineral, bands who split up in 1999 and 1997 respectively but are two of my absolute favourite bands and have been consistently throughout various other phases of my music taste. The fact that I got to see them both play this year is absolutely insane – granted I had to travel to the US for Mineral, but I will be seeing them here in February too. I am still yet to be moved to tears by a live show but I was mesmerised to a level that is laughably lame during both of these, in a way that I have been only once before (at Bon Iver).

The Mineral show was part of The Fest in Florida which some friends and I decided to make the trip over for this year – other stand out bands there were The Hotelier (although annoyingly I only caught a few songs, it was excellent), and of course The Descendants.

Mineral at Fest 13, November 2014

I also finally got to see Fall Out Boy this year, after previously missing out on UK shows for various reasons (and really missing out on small shows that some of my friends went to in the early 2000s due to the fact that I was a child at the time). FOB is my ultimate guilty pleasure; everything post Infinity On High is of no interest to me, but I definitely listen to Take This To Your Grave and/or From Under the Cork Tree on a monthly basis at the very least. The show was at the Phones 4U Arena in Manchester which is just crazy huge and, I feel, doesn’t provide the atmosphere best suited to a band like FOB as their live show just isn’t big enough, or good enough if I’m brutally and objectively honest, but I loved it and had the best time nonetheless!Speaking of guilty pleasures, if memory serves me correctly, the first show I went to in 2014 was Mayday Parade, thanks to a hookup by a friend, and despite having released 3 or 4 records since the one I care about they played all the best songs from it.

I’ll talk about Brand New here too – a band I never got that into as a teen emo (I was team Taking Back Sunday) but who I’ve grown to appreciate way more in my old age (ha). I saw them back in April in Manchester and they were absolutely incredible, a highlight of my year for sure and a far better live show than TBS (sorry!!), partly down to the fact that they have never released a bad record and partly down to the fact that they’re just really, really good. Saves The Day also played, which was fun.In case that wasn’t all enough for my 14 year old self, I went to Hawthorne Heights‘ 10 year anniversary tour for The Silence In Black and White, where they played that record from start to finish. It was embarrassingly great (until they played some new songs afterwards), and I’m glad I got that one out of my system.

Brand New in Manchester, April 2014

Stepping forward from the 1990s and early 2000s, another highlight was seeing Title Fight in Antwerp. Now I’ve seen Title Fight a number of times before, and it’s difficult to beat their show at the Star & Garter, but this was so much fun. Perhaps because it was coupled with a trip to Antwerp and Brussels (two lovely cities, if you’re in the mood for a weekend city break), perhaps because Justice, Survival, Not Afraid, Sportswear and Headroom also played great sets, or perhaps just because Title Fight is just a great band. I’m definitely excited to hear their new record, and see them again at Outbreak Fest in 2015. I also saw Manchester Orchestra, another band I have loved since my early teens, but never managed to see play (partly due to the fact that the times they did play here were, to my knowledge, at 18+ venues before I turned 18, or at festivals which I didn’t attend). It was magical and Colly Strings was so emotional, but I did see a man pee in a cup instead of go to the toilets approximately 3 metres away.

Justice in Antwerp, May 2014

Title Fight in Antwerp, May 2014

One thing that 2014 lacked in for me has been hardcore shows. I enjoyed Twitching Tongues early on in the year, and I did see Turnstile again in the summer. I also saw Stick Together, Take Offense and Cold World at Outbreak Fest – none of which were mind-blowingly great, but pretty cool nonetheless. Fingers crossed for some better things in 2015!

Other honourable mentions of the year were Merchandise (incredible band but oddly hardly anybody went), Headroom‘s first show, Citizen, Nothing, Taking Back Sunday, Balance and Composure, Seahaven, Diamond Youth, Nai Harvest, Walleater and last but by absolutely no means least One Direction(!!!!) (VIP courtesy of BooHoo!), which was a truly excellent experience. There were other bands too, who I’ve either forgotten about or just weren’t quite worthy of a mention. Next year I’m already looking forward to American Football, Mineral (again), Alvvays (oh somebody sell me a ticket for Manchester in January, please?), and hopefully some better hardcore shows. Bands I’m gutted I missed this year include Lust For Youth, Iceage, Slowdive (what is up with bands who only play in London??).

The absolute worst band I saw was Bam Margera’s Fuckface Unstoppable, a somewhat spontaneous evening thanks to a hookup by a friend, and an absolute assault on my ears, but I met Bam Margera so it was all worth it for my 14 year old self.

Me with Bam Margera (lol)

So all in all, 2014 hasn’t been a year in which I’ve been to many particularly ~cool shows, but one during which I have thoroughly relived my youth (a phrase which sounds ridiculous coming from a 21 year old, but you know what I mean) and also had some musical experiences I never thought would be possible thanks to the magic that is 90s bands being short on cash. Were you at any of these? I’ve linked to the Bandcamp or Lastfm pages of some of the more current bands I’ve mentioned here, do go and check them out. I wanna talk about music, so please let me know your thoughts on this post!