Top 10 Albums of 2014

1. PVRIS - White Noise

It's not often that when I discover a band, they can make such an impression on me within the matter of weeks. Welcome PVRIS, a band that I only stumbled across in September time, but when their debut album White Noise was released in November I was head over heels. With dark, haunting words entwined with fuzzy synths and Lynn Gunn's incredible vocal tone, every track is a masterpiece and that is why it's my top album of the year. 

Favourite Track: Fire

2. Lower Than Atlantis - Self Titled

As soon as that bouncing riff in 'Here We Go' made it's way to our ears and firmly stuck itself to our brains, it was obvious that whatever LTA had in the pipeline for the album was going to be huge. They did not disappoint, though more melodic, their fourth studio album is full of anthemic tracks that beg to be played to thousands, all wrapped up with a nice dose of cheeky Mike Duce charm. 

Favourite Track: Stays the Same

3. Twin Atlantic - Great Divide

My favourite Scot’s returned this year with this absolute belter of a record. Taking things in a new direction, a little more wild and with a little more party all put together into a Rock and Roll record - Great Divide has it all. It still retains everything Twin Atlantic are known for but they’ve pushed their sound to it’s peak and delivered bold, beefy tracks that'll have you fist pumping for days. 

Favourite Track: Hold On

4. Moose Blood - I’ll Keep You In Mind From Time to Time
I've been swooning over Moose Blood and their punked up love songs for some time now, but 2014 finally saw the release of their debut album I'll Keep You In Mind From Time To Time. Brimming with emo influences and grainy guitars, it's like a dose of nostalgia with a modern twist. 

Favourite Track: I Hope You're Miserable 

5. Mallory Knox - Asymmetry

I was a huge fan of Mallory Knox's debut record Signals, so there was no denying to see how they'd step up and do better with sophomore album Asymmetry. They certainly delivered, combining Mikey's impressive vocal talent with echoing guitar melodies, they've also improved upon their songwriting abilities - making this album standout amongst many of the others released this year. It has its ballads and it has it's full-throttle, punchy anthems which make it an absolute treat to listen too. 

Favourite Track: She Took Him to the Lake

6. Neck Deep - Wishful Thinking
There's no denying that I have a big place in my heart for pop-punk, having grown up around bands such as New Found Glory, I'm very fond of the new, rejuvenated era that has taken over 2014. Neck Deep are a band that have absolutely dominated the pop-punk scene, with debut album Wishful Thinking scoring them trips around the World and high-fives from the genres heroes. This is a band that the UK should be incredibly proud of and I can't wait to hear what they've got in store next. 

Favourite Track: Losing Teeth

7. BANKS - Goddess

Despite the fact my music taste very much focuses on the heavier side of music, I like the breakdowns and the huge chanting choruses, but sometimes I discover a gem on the complete other end of the spectrum that I just cannot stop listening to. Welcome BANKS, the goddamn sassiest singer that I have completely fallen head over heels for this year. Her debut album twists incredibly dark lyrics, with vibrating basslines and an RnB soul. It's smooth and sultry, with a hidden bite and I can honestly say her voice is one of the most astonishing I've ever heard live.

Favourite Track: Drowning

8. Natives - Indoor War
Potentially the least well-known band on my list, but the debut album from New Forest pop-rockers Natives has been on repeat most days since its release way back in the first quarter of 2014. There's no heavy breakdowns, there's no stadium-ready anthems, but what it is full of is eleven tracks of pure upbeat, bouncing riffs and choruses to make you smile. I'm losing count of how many times I've seen these guys live now and I'm still not bored of hearing their music, good vibes for days!

Favourite Track: The Horizon/Can't Say No

9. Charlie Simpson - Long Road Home

From Busted through to Fightstar and now onto his solo career, I've followed Charlie's music career since I was twelve and we're now in the era where he is at his finest. His debut Young Pilgrim announced Charlie as an established singer-songwriter and the latest addition, Long Road Home has only further cemented his worth within this industry. With beautifully written acoustic melodies accompanied by an old English charm, Young Pilgrim was written for long summer days and cosy winter nights. It's an all-year round record that never fails to please your ears.

Favourite Track: Comets

10. Ben Howard - I Forget Where We Were

My favourite solo artist returned this year, however this time around he's swapped the acoustic for an electric and has created an extremely haunting record with an incredible amount of depth. The guitars are slick and echo alongside Ben's moving vocal tone and this record really flaunts off his skilled musicianship to its finest. It's quite the change from the debut record that threw him into the spotlight, but I Forget Where We Were shows Ben in a whole new light, which makes it even more enticing.

Favourite Track: Conrad

Top 5 Albums of 2011:

2011 for me was a very up and down year, but there was one thing for me that stood out over everything else and that was the exceptional music that has treated my ears over the past 12 months. I've been to a number of live shows and purchased various albums both of new artists and old favourites. 2011 was an exciting year music wise, particularly for upcoming artists, so I am most definitely hoping that 2012 will have a whole lot more to offer! For now though these are my top 5 albums of 2011, it was fairly difficult to narrow it down to five, but i am very happy with my choices!

1. Ben Howard - Every Kingdom

Some of you may have read my album review already on this album, so i won't go into too much detail here. However this album has not stopped playing on repeat since it was released back in the beginning of October. I am quite frankly in awe of Ben Howard and his musical abilities, his voice is soulful and unique and his guitar skills are some of the best i've seen in a long time. This album is fantastic from start to finish and i find myself getting completely lost in the music, unaware of anything happening around me (sometimes a problem when i'm walking around in public!) His music makes me lust for the country air or a long car journey to an unknown destination. The album suits any mood, high or low so if you haven't yet heard his music or bought the album, i cannot urge you enough to do so, i guarantee that you won't regret it.

2. MONA - MONA

I first discovered MONA at the beginning of the summer and have loved them since. I saw them live on Halloween and despite spending the evening alone i couldn't have been happier. Infront of me stood a group of very attractive Tennessee men, sweating their way through a rock filled set list. It's becoming difficult these days to find some real, talented rock bands, however MONA have reignited the fire and are making people fall back in love with the old school rock sounds we grew up on. Personal favourites from the album include 'Listen to Your Love', ' Teenager' and 'Shooting the Moon'. Take a listen and i'm quite sure after hearing Nick Brown (lead vocalist) say the word "Babydoll" they will have wormed their way into your music loving hearts.

3. Charlie Simpson - Young Pilgrim

I've been banging on about Charlie Simpson for a while now, he was the influence for one of my first posts on here and has made various appearances on Seaside in the City ever since, but can you blame me? Young Pilgrim was released in August and is still the soundtrack to most of my daily life, after seeing him live in Brighton in October my love for him grew even more as the show was just outstanding. Some of you may have already heard his three singles from Young Pilgrim, 'Down Down Down', 'Parachutes' and 'Cemetery' which would have given you a great taster for the rest of the album. But i must urge you all to get you hands on a copy of this excellent debut record, it's full of brilliantly written songs that a lot of people can relate to, Charlie's choice of instruments are spot on and the whole album has such a great vibe to it.

4. Twin Atlantic - Free

Twin Atlantic, a four man, scottish filled, rock beast. These chaps are well on their way in making themselves known in the alternative scene and i am so excited to see how far they will go in the next year. Free is an album that, from start to finish makes you want to jump around in the air screaming along to their songs. I'm quite sure they'll be playing the festival circuit this summer, so if they're playing one of the one's you will be attending, go see them, you will undoubtedly be impressed with what you see and hear. You'll have a sudden desire to have a scottish accent and if like me and my friends, will go around quoting lines from their songs in the most inappropriate of situations. Sam McTrusty's voice is gritty but powerful and really creates an atmosphere with each song he sings. Together they make up a very exciting new approach to rock music.

5. Benjamin Francis Leftwich - Last Smoke Before the Snowstorm

I reviewed Ben's album back in the summer on here and i still stand by every word i said. This is a beautiful record that stands out amongst the other choices due to it's style and genre. Each of the tracks on the record are fantastic, Ben has one of those husky, soulful voices that makes you melt a little on the inside and go off into a daydream world. Well, that's what happens to me anyway! Definitely an album to put on when you're having a quiet evening to yourself so you can just lose yourself in his music. He spent most of 2011 touring around Europe and by the looks of things is doing the same for 2012, already he has UK dates set for February and i wouldn't be surprised if he's enlisted for every festival going! Benjamin Francis Leftwich is definitely a name to remember and keep your eyes out for, i predict great things!


So there we have it, my top five albums from 2011, these are just my words though, to really believe what i say you need to go buy each of the records and listen for yourself. Of course there were many other albums that i enjoyed which i feel deserve a mention, so if none of the above tickle your fancy then maybe try out one of the below:

You Me At Six - Sinners Never Sleep
Deaf Havana - Fools and Worthless Liars
Kids In Glasshouses - In Gold Blood
Example - Playing in the Shadows
Ed Sheeran - +
Birdy - Birdy
Dave McPherson - The Hardship Diaries
Friendly Fires - Pala
Jessie J - Who You Are
Lower Than Atlantis - World Record
Rizzle Kicks - Stereo Typical
Rihanna - Talk That Talk
Two Spot Gobi - The Sun Will Rise

Live Review: Twin Atlantic - The Haunt, Brighton

Think of a great Scottish rock band…. I’m guessing the first band that comes to mind is Biffy Clyro right? Well now you need to push that name aside and make way for a Glaswegian four piece that are making a strong name for themselves in the alternative scene.

The weather in Brighton was certainly fit for the Scottish, (I definitely didn’t come prepared!) However this didn’t seem to faze the rest of the Brighton fans, upon entering the venue it was clear it was close to a sell out and pushing your way towards the front was a task not many could handle. The support acts were unfortunately a little disappointing, with most of the crowd spending their time at the bar during their sets.

Despite this, as soon as the lights lowered and the introduction music started, the crowd were ready and waiting to let themselves go. ‘Serious Underground Dance Vibes’ was the opening track and even though it has no vocals, it most definitely set up the atmosphere, leaving the crowd on edge for what was next to come. The Twin Atlantic boys then went full pelt into ‘Make a Beast of Myself’ and from that moment on they had the audience firmly in the palm of their hands. They made their way through most of the tracks from latest album ‘Free’, mixing it up with some older tracks such as ‘Human After All’ and a few from the first EP’s.  Each song provided evidence that Twin Atlantic were here to play a rock show, with circle pits taking up most of the venue and even lads shouting “I want your babies” in their best Scottish accents, it was clear that Twin Atlantic are fully accepted in the scene.

By the time it came to the encore everyone in the room was insanely hyped up, on returning we were treated to two of their latest singles, ‘Time for You to Stand Up’ and ‘Free’ which, quite frankly made me worry about the structure of the building as I could feel the floor bouncing underneath me. As the show came to an end, every last bit of energy was squeezed out and the crowd left rather sweaty but full of passion. There’s a lot of love for Twin Atlantic down south and it’s pretty awesome seeing so many people come together to celebrate their music.

If a proper rock show it what you are after, than I highly recommend going to see Twin Atlantic, I’m quite sure you won’t regret it! 

It's the end of the month

Could anybody tell me where July went please? However this does mean it is even closer to September, meaning it's even closer to all my friends being back and moving into my superb new student house!

Unfortunately it hasn't been a very exciting month, hence me not blogging very much. I genuinely don't have a lot going on other than working and i'm pretty sure nobody wants to hear about that!

My rollerskates finally arrived!

Look how amazing they are! However i haven't actually been out on them yet :( with this ever changing weather it's hard to know when to actually go out for the afternoon & at the moment it seems to only be sunny at weekends, which unfortunately is when i'm usually in a sleep induced coma from working friday and saturday nights! I really should get a daytime job, these night shifts aren't doing me any good! But it pays, and it is a good laugh so i can't really complain!

I haven't made many purchases recently either as money is short. Although i have recently bought some Sea Salt Spray. I am a very big fan of the whole wavy, beach look but often have difficulty getting the look myself without it looking very odd and fake. So after reading about these sprays i though i'd give one a go! These aren't the cheapest of products and many of the ones that were recommended such as Label M, are about £17 a bottle! Definitely not in my price range! However i did find this Lee Stafford one in boots for around £7...

...and it works a treat! It says in the instructions to apply to wet hair and leave to dry naturally, although my hair takes FOREVER to dry naturally and i often don't have time to wait. So the way i have achieved the look is by spraying my hair when wet, then blow drying using my fingers instead of a brush to give more texture, and then when it's nearly dry I spritz a bit more on the ends and give it a bit of a shake up with my hands and i then have perfect beachy waves :) lovely!

Whilst i was in Boots i also got some tanning moisturiser, because lets face it, with the summer we are having there isn't much of a chance of getting a tan! I've used the Dove one previously but i wasn't so keen as it had quite a strong smell and usually left me with streaks, therefore this time i went for Johnson's...

...so far so good! I've only applied it a few times but i already have a nice tan building on my legs and it isn't too orange which is nice. Plus it doesn't have a strong smell to it so I'm not a walking around stinking of fake tan :)

Lots of new music treating my ears this month as well. This month i have been listening too:

Benjamin Francis Leftwich - Last Smoke Before The Snowstorm (Album)
this album is utterly beautiful and i recommend to all!
Polarsets - Sunshine Eyes
Charlie Simpson - Parachutes
Pixie Lott - All About Tonight
Blink 182 - Up All Night
Coldplay - Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall
Ed Sheeran - You Need Me
Foster The People - Torches (Album)
Twin Atlantic - Free (Album)

Birthday.

On Sunday it was my turn to leave the easy world of being a teenager and join the not so easy, important world of being an adult. I turned 20. Not really a big birthday, that will come next year for my 21st. But clearly as soon as you leave the teenage years behind, relatives stop sending birthday cards and presents are down to a minmum. So i wasn't particularly excited for this one, especially as i had already recieved my main birthday present from my parents, which was a weekend away in the New Forest in this....

.... Pretty awesome huh?
However i realise that has made me sound like i am not grateful for the presents i did receive, of course i am grateful for them, and i loved them all! My mum has ordered me some brilliant rollerskates, which should hopefully arrive soon, then i can start skating along Southsea seafront!
I also got some Toms, which are SUPER comfy! I had no idea how comfy they actually were!

Other than that, i got a pretty thermos for my tea, and this purse which you can wear on wrist ( an essential for festivals and nights out!) Two Spot Gobi's album, which is also a must have for the summer!  A £15 iTunes gift card, which i have already spent half of on the Twin Atlantic album! Plus a £20 Accessorize voucher and £30 cash. So i don't think i have done too badly if i say so myself :)

I'm planning to have a proper party for it in September when i'm back at uni with all my friends as that will be easier, plus it's an excuse to have a party!

Hope all is well with everyone else!

Tamsyn x