Spring Playlist

 

Recently I have been listening to a lot of different artists I have never listened to before. Usually I stick to smaller bands with a slight pop rock vibe, and not necessarily 'new' music either. However lately I feel I have been more open to different genres. So here is what has been added to my Spring playlist this month!

 

- Firstly I have been listening to Imagine Dragon's album 'Night Visions' on replay for about a week now! I feel this album is the perfect music to have in the background whilst working. I had my mock exams last week and whilst revising I can't sit in silence, so as I was doing my last minute preparations and revision I had this album on. My favourite track is 'Bleeding out', I'm not quite sure why this song stands out so much to me, it might be something to do with the lead vocalist's voice in this specific song as I tend to enjoy music much more when the vocals are so raw.

 

- Another album I have been enjoying recently is Bastille's album 'Bad Blood'. My psychology teacher has a habit of playing music whilst we are working, and although this can get annoying when its one of her 'chill out' albums I am grateful she played this one! Obviously I had already heard the bands famous 'Pompeii' which in my opinion, although a great and catchy song, it was over played, however this album proved to be worth the hype and is definitely worth a listen.

 

- Lastly is a band called Emblem3. The American trio were contestants on The X Factor USA, and originally I didn't have an opinion on them as I had only seen one performance on TV. However a friend of mine sent me a link to their audition song and I instantly fell in love with their unique sound which Drew describes as 'feel good, real musicianship'. Although their first album contains some extreme pop elements (which is only to be expected after being signed by such a big label), their originals such as 'Curious' and 'Riptide' along with covers such as 'Santeria' and 'Indigo' express their impressive musical ability. Another thing which instantly captured me was their free spirited personalities. These boys are definitely world-smart and this shows through in their deep and meaningful lyrics which anyone can relate to.

5 Seconds of Summer gig!

 

So last Tuesday (The 25th February) I braved the wind and rain and stood outside The Ritz in Manchester for seven long hours to see the band '5 Seconds of Summer'. I don't regret my decision to stand outside for that long, as the gig was completely standing and being my height, I need to be near the front to be able to see!

 

5 Seconds of Summer are an Australian band who originally started  out by posting covers and original songs on youtube, from here they got noticed by One Direction and have since toured the world! I have been a fan since their 'pink speaker days' and can honestly say I feel like I have seen these boys grow up. They have inspired me to follow my dreams, as cliché as it sounds, as they are my age and have achieved so much in such a short space of time.

 

Whilst sitting outside I tried to avoid the amused stares from the locals by attempting to revise for my Psychology exam which I had only two days later, however this didn't work as only five minutes into my revision the heavens opened and down came the rain. Luckily I remembered an umbrella, and although sitting on a freezing cold concrete floor in the rain isn't my idea of a fun activity, having that umbrella saved me from having a frizzy mess of hair and actually provided us with some insulation!

 

So after numerous hot drink runs, toilet breaks and an extremely appreciated pizza express the doors finally opened at 7pm! Walking through the foyer I literally felt my heart jump, I was finally going to see the boys in their own headlining concert for the first time! We managed to bag a pretty good area to stand in, however as more people filed in I realised there was no way I could cope with being pushed around for the next few hours by the hundreds of fangirls, so instead we went onto the balcony where it seemed the fans more our age had decided to congregate.

 

After the short set by the support act Mike Dignam (which was surprisingly good, his drummer has a constant smile on his face - I swear he's the happiest man I've ever seen!) the lights finally dimmed and on came Luke, Ashton, Michael and Calum.

 

Although the majority of the gig is a complete blur in my mind, the one thing I can remember is how much all four of these boys put into their music - my point proven by Ashton managing to break his drums during the first verse of a song! You could see how much music means to each of them by the way they jump around stage, not missing a single note. At one point Luke had to stop singing to take a minute just to look out into the crowd and see how many people supported them, I may have had slightly watery eyes at this part! The excitement and admiration was obvious on every single audience members face throughout the entire set and didn't leave even whilst we were pushing through the crowds in an attempt to leave!

 

The main thing I noticed throughout the day was how welcoming and friendly 5SOS fans are. I have been to numerous gigs like this where fans aren't even able to look at each other without looking like they wanted a fight. I'm not one to get sucked into fandoms so I had an idea in my head that all fans were obsessive and possessive, however this idea completely left my head as soon as everyone around me started to sing together and talk as if we had known each other for years, just minutes after I joined the line! It was as if (as cheesy as this may sound) these four boys from Australia had managed to get hundreds of people to bond over one thing; music.

 

I sincerely hope 5 Seconds of Summer have a long and successful career in the industry. And to all those fans out there who haven't yet had the change to see these boys live, stay positive and don't give up! Having tried for years to see them, I know it gets frustrating, but the wait is 100% worth it! I have been to many gigs and this is by far up there with the best!

 

Emily x