Top Albums of 2015

Hi guys!
Today I am going to be doing a post recapping my top albums of 2015!

2015 was a big year for music. The likes of Adele and Justin Bieber returned to the music scene, bringing with them record smashing albums and singles which were the best sellers of the year, and hundreds were left confused as seasoned artists such as Taylor Swift, Sam Smith and Ed Sheeran all announced they were taking breaks from making music.
In my opinion, there are some absolute stand out albums of the year, so I'm going to get right into it!

1. BADLANDS by Halsey
The best album of the year, in my opinion, goes to Halsey.
If anyone follows my twitter, facebook, or snapchat, or scrolls down a few posts right here on this blog, it is clear to see how much I rate Halsey. Badlands was so hyped up, everyone was talking about it, and for someone who wasn't 'very well known', this album release was a huge deal. It's safe to say that Badlands lived up to it's high expectations; it reached number 1 on the US Top Alt Albums chart, number 2 on the Billboard 200, and reached top 10 in over 11 countries around the world. Halsey has also been touring the world this year, both as a headliner and as a support act. She's taking Badlands on the road in 2016, for her first headlining world tour, and has already sold out pretty much every show, including one at Madison Square Garden. Bottom line is the album is incredible, and I can't wait to see what she has tucked up her sleeve for 2016!

2. 25 by Adele 

Pop giant Adele released her third studio album this year, and of course it broke every record imaginable, being the best selling album of the year. This comes as no surprise to me; the album was all anyone could talk about for weeks, and with a song like Hello leading the way, only good things could come from it. Adele is also taking 25 on tour in 2016, making it her first tour EVER, and I cannot wait. The album oozes class, talent and star quality. I don't see how someone could dislike '25'; there are songs on there to suit every taste. 

3. THAT'S THE SPIRIT by Bring Me The Horizon 

I only have one word to say regarding this album, and that is PERFECTION. I really got into BMTH a lot over summer when I was going through some stuff and the words that they come out with are so relevant and surprisingly comforting. This album isn't as heavy as the previous works of the band, but it is still unmistakeably BMTH, and I would say they've done well finding a balance to try and keep all fans happy. 

4. A HEAD FULL OF DREAMS by Coldplay 

I love this album. I love, love, love, love, LOVE it. Coldplay's Parachutes was the first album I ever bought with my own money, and they still make me feel like I'm discovering their music for the first time with every album they release. Coldplay are going on a stadium world tour in 2016, and I'm so excited to see what they have planned. It's going to be huge. 

5. SOUNDS GOOD FEELS GOOD by 5 Seconds of Summer 

Now then. Love them or hate them, 5SOS have managed to release an album which should suit all tastes. Despite the controversy surrounding the band, SGFG has managed to pack a punch this year, going to number 1 in 9 different countries and top 5 in 10 others on presale orders alone. They have some GREAT songs on the album, although the singles coming from the second album are the worst of the bunch. All in all, I really do love this album, as is clear if you scroll down to read the review I posted when it was released. 5SOS are going on a world headlining tour in 2016 with this album, and it will be interesting to see how they have evolved their show from their previous tour. 

6. PURPOSE by Justin Bieber 

Along with this album comes the greatest turnaround in pop history. As soon as Bieber dropped this album, people who used to hate him are now becoming fully fledged 'Beliebers', taking singles from the album and the album itself straight to the top of the charts around the world. Some of the songs on this album are incredibly good, 'Love Yourself', 'Sorry' and 'The Feeling' being three of my favourites. Bieber is another artist that will be taking this album on tour in 2016, selling out his headlining world arena tour in MINUTES. He's clearly worked hard on the album, and good on him; I think it's great. 

 7. AMERICAN CANDY by The Maine 

The final album I am going to mention in this list is American Candy by The Maine. The song 'English Girls' is easily one of my most played songs for 2015, and the band have provided hit after hit after hit with this album. They're strikingly similar to Scouting for Girls and The 1975 but somehow still have their own sound, which I LOVE. Excellent album from an excellent band, and I can't wait to see them grow in 2016. 

I hope you guys enjoyed this post, and if you think there should be an album on there that I have missed, please leave it in a comment below! 

Until next time, 

MG 

xxx

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5 Seconds Of Summer: Sounds Good Feels Good Review!

Hey guys!
Today I'm going to be doing a review of 5 Seconds of Summer's new album, Sounds Good Feels Good.

Hailed as 'the biggest new rock act in the world', the four lads from Australia had huge expectations to live up to, especially seen as the second album typically makes or breaks the artist.
Posting cryptic clues on social media leading fans to find artwork all over the world getting ready for 'The New Broken Scene', 5SOS amassed a huge hype in the month before the album release.
Question is, would Sounds Good Feels Good be as good it was being made out?

The band have taken a new direction with this album. Their musical knowledge and creativity shine through, and they've managed to overhaul their sound without alienating their fans, most of whom come from a 'pop' background.
Some of the songs on the album are comparable to other well established songs; 'Hey Everybody' for example sounds hauntingly similar to Duran Duran's 'Hungry Like The Wolf', and My Chemical Romance fans have claimed the lead single 'She's Kinda Hot' is a rip off of the 2007 anthem 'Holiday'.
However, other songs on the album are absolute belters. 'Jet Black Heart' is the perfect song for this band, showing they can appeal to both sides of their audience.
'Airplanes', 'The Girl Who Cried Wolf', 'Broken Home' and 'Outer Space/Carry On' are bloody brilliant, proving that the band can write their own catchy songs which lend themselves perfectly to angsty arena sing along sessions.

I have to give credit where credit is due, this album for me, did live up to the hype. Undoubtedly, the album leans more towards the pop side rather than rock, but there are some real moments where the potential is literally screaming out.
There is no denying that 5 Seconds of Summer are a talented band; lead singer Luke Hemmings has that smooth tone to his voice that lends itself perfectly to the more emotional tracks, lead guitarist Michael Clifford really pushes the band into the 'rock' genre with his impressive 'Billie Joe Armstrong' sounding voice, bassist Calum Hood is an outstanding all rounder, and drummer Ashton Irwin is simply one of the most talented musicians there is out there at the moment.

Overall, it's a great album. There is endless amounts of potential with this band, and I can't wait to see what they come up with next.

Only The Young: I Do - Review!

Hey guys!
Today I'm going to do a review of Only The Young's new track, I Do.
Only The Young, or more commonly known as OTY to their legions of fqans are a four-piece singing group made up of Mikey Bromley, Charlie George, Parisa Tarjomani and Betsy-Blue English. They're most well known for appearing on the X Factor in 2014, leaving the competition in the seventh week, however the band already had built up a strong fanbase prior to the competition, and even performed at Capital's Summertime Ball at Wembley Stadium!

'I Do' is the first single from the quartet, and it's perfect for the summer. It's sickly sweet pop with  a hint of blues, and brings a much needed fun, summery vibe to the plate. The song starts with a chorus of 'hey's', which only ever sets you up for a good time, and then Bromley swoops in and starts singing, closely followed by George and then the beautiful English. Betsey has an INCREDIBLE voice, which suits this style of music perfectly. Furthermore, Tarjomani and George show that the band can play their own instruments, helping to shy away from the fully fledged, all singing, all dancing pop group.
All four members of this band are extremely talented, and can all sing very well, which is illustrated in this track. The band have managed to find the balance between being 'child friendly' whilst appealing to older fans as well.

OTY have concocted a recipe for success. All four of them are extremely talented, extremely good looking, and extremely likeable. The band have fans of all ages, and although they may be targeting the younger audience, there is also a very real place for them in the 'older' music industry.
'I Do' is a song that gets more and more catchy the more and more you listen to it. I've got it stuck in my head from writing this, and I am not complaining at all!
I really wish this band all the luck in the world!
As usual, I will leave all links below,
Until next time,
MG
xxx

Only The Young:
Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8uLHqWWk6DxsV6WxnxGLaw
Twitter - https://twitter.com/OTYOfficial
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/otyofficial
Instagam - https://instagram.com/OTYOfficial/

My Links:
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Ian Davies: Leave Me Tonight Review

Hey guys!

Today I'm going to do a review of the first song from a new artist, Ian Davies.
Davies is a singer/songwriter from Liverpool. Taking influences from Whitney Houston, Michael Jackson, Mariah Carey and Alicia Keys, he has spent the last 18 months working on writing his own content, and recording demo's at John Delf's Edge Recording Studios, who's credits include 5 Seconds of Summer, Plan B, The Script, Lily Allen and Sophie Ellis Bextor.

About a month ago, Davies released an acoustic version of a song called 'Leave Me Tonight', and it has received nothing but positive comments, and to be honest, I can see why. Davies has a certain 'soul' to his voice; it's very rich and comforting. The song itself is very good, boasting impressive melodic qualities, and is very well written and put together. Of course, the young artist will need to improve to perfect his craft; stage presence is something that is very important, as is being able to convey emotion using only the eyes when performing, and Davies sometimes looks a little stiff, meaning his performance comes across as 'too-staged' at some points, however these little issues can be ironed out very quickly, and there is no denying the talent that this young man has. You can tell song writing is something that matters to the Liverpudlian, and he has said he wants to make sure his lyrics have 'depth and meaning, so people can relate or at least believe in the story or situation he's singing about'. With a mindset like that, he has the ability to go far.

There are comments on the video that highlight the likeness that Davies has to international superstar Sam Smith. Again, I can see why, Davies has that deep, anxious voice similar to Smith; if if you put that over a Tom Waits like piano track, similar to 'Leave Me Tonight', it's a recipe for success.

Overall, I really, really like the song. It's peaceful, it's relateable, and it's a solid start from the young artist. With a lot of hard work, I see no reason why Ian Davies can't be a household name. Give it a few years, and we may have a new star on our hands, and I wish him all the luck in the world.

I'll leave links below to the song, and a link where you can download the track if you want to.

Until next time,
MG
xxx

Ian Davies:
Twitter - https://twitter.com/IanDaviesMusic
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/pages/Ian-Davies/464701210371502
Leave Me Tonight - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HRvs8y6j4DA
Download of the song! - https://soundcloud.com/ian-davies-87/leave-me-tonight-acoustic
Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwRGIyIUMvLRnyDJpUPVc4Q


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Hey Violet - I Can Feel IT EP - Review!

Hey guys!
Today I thought I would do a quick review of Hey Violet's debut EP, I Can Feel It.
If you haven't heard of them yet, Hey Violet are a 4 piece rock band from LA, California, made up of Miranda Miller (guitar, keyboard, and vocals), Nia Lovelis (drums and vocals), Rena Lovelis (bass and vocals) and Casey Moreta (lead guitar). They're currently making waves in the music scene, being the opening act for Aussie giants 5 Seconds of Summer on their 'ROWYSO Tour', and are earning themselves fans worldwide, boasting an impressive almost 700 thousand twitter followers collectively.

On the 17th of July, the young band released their debut EP, and it went straight to the top of the iTunes charts around the world, showing the power that their dedicated fanbase have. 

The EP has 5 tracks on it, and is a pleasure to listen to from start to finish. The first track 'I Can Feel It' is punchy and sets the scene for the rest of the EP. 'I Can Feel It' is the perfect anthem for kids all across the world, who have just found the person they are infatuated with; it's super relatable and shows of Lovelis' vocals perfectly. 

The second track is an angsty little number called 'Smash Into You', which I LOVE. It's a fist pumping, body twitching, hand clapping masterpiece. Next is a slow song, called 'Sparks Fly'. It's beautiful, and shows off the band's harmonies. There's no doubt that this band can all sing, but this track just solidifies their talent. The penultimate track is a song called 'Can't Take Back The Bullet', and this is my favourite song on the EP. It's such an empowering song, and is perfect for screaming at the top of your lungs. Plus, the riff at the beginning of the song is reminiscent of a classic 80's rock track, which I enjoy a lot. The final song is called 'You Don't Love Me Like You Should' and is your classic break up song which anyone could relate to. It's full of drums, bass, and Moreta does nothing short of showing off when it comes to the epic riff in the middle of the song. It really is a good song.

All in all, the EP is great. It shows a lot of promise for the young band, and I'm excited for what they're gonna bring in the future.
They're also perfecting their craft live, which can be difficult to do, but Hey Violet are so good live, they can get a crowd on their side easily and they make sure everyone is having a good time. It's very rare that a drummer can sing as well as the rest of the band, but Lovelis manages to sing in tune, whilst playing the drums at the same time; she's a talented lady! The entire band works very well together, and the addition of keys from the beautiful Miller makes the band stand out from your average 'guitar/drums/bass' rock band.

I've had the pleasure of meeting the band, and they're four of the sweetest kids out there. They seem very humble and grateful for the success they're getting, and they're only going to get more and more, and I wish them all the luck in the world.

Until next time,
MG
xxx


Buy 'I Can Feel It' here!
iTunes: http://smarturl.it/ICanFeelItEP
Spotify: http://smarturl.it/ICanFeelItEPS 
Physical Copies: http://smarturl.it/heyvioletD2C 
Amazon: http://smarturl.it/ICanFeelItEPa 
Google: http://smarturl.it/ICanFeelItEPg 

---- 
Website: http://www.heyviolet.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/heyvioletoffi...
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/heyviolet
Instagram: http://instagram.com/heyviolet
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/heyviolet 
Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/heyviolet

She's Kinda Hot: 5SOS Review!

Hello guys!
Today I come to you from a very busy, smelly train on my way to LoveBox festival. I was going to wait to post this review but I have been itching to post this since I heard the song and I simply can't wait any longer.
The cheeky chappies of 5 Seconds of Summer have decided to grace us with a new track of theirs.
'She's Kinda Hot' went live about an hour and a half ago, and is all I've seen all over my twitter ever since.

The new song is nothing like 5SOS have done before. It's a slick, angsty, punk-pop anthem, to say the least.
Anyone that knows me will know I'm a big fan of 5SOS, and their debut album was by no means poor, but the new direction in which their music seems to be taking is one for the best, in my opinion.
The band have managed to take the winning formula from the first album (cheekiness, killer hooks, impressive riffs and unforgettable lyrics) and turned it into an AWESOME track, reminiscent of early-to-mid- noughties pop punk. SKH could easily be a track from pop punk giants Sum 41, but still has an unmistakeable 5SOS sound.
This introduction to the 'New Broken Scene' (see what I did there) involves a hell of a lot of guitar, bass and drums, and I LOVE IT.
Guitarist Luke Hemmings starts the song, followed by bassist Calum Hood, each providing a raspy verse which set the song up perfectly for drummer Ashton Irwin to come along and smash it out of the park. It rare that a drummer of a band can sing as well as the guitarists, and Irwin manages it with ease. And of course, what would a 5SOS song be without an impressive riff from one of the best, Michael Clifford.

I'm super excited for 5SOS and the direction in which they're headed. I like this song a lot.
Until next time,
MG
xxx

Buy the song on iTunes here > https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/shes-kinda-hot-single/id1018919397

Little Sea: With You Without You EP Review

Hey guys!
Today I'm going to be doing a review of Little Sea's new EP, With You Without You.

Little Sea are an Australian pop-rock band, formed in late 2013. Based in Sydney, the band is made up of Andy Butler (vocals and guitar), Oliver Kirby (guitar), Dylan Clark (bass, piano) and Leighton Cauchi (drums), and are signed to music giants Sony Music Australia.

The band's first single 'Thank You' was released in May 2014, and this was followed up by a tour, including a support slot for 5 Seconds of Summer. In July, the group released their EP 'Wake The Sun', which hit number one on the Australian iTunes chart, proving to be an instant hit.

The new EP, titled 'With You Without You' is a 6 track record, including an acoustic version of one of the tracks. 

The first track is a song called 'Back to You', and it starts the EP off with a bang. It's upbeat and fun, and shows the band's ability to write; the lyrics are relateable, and work well with the band's overall image. The second track is an absolute tune called 'Friends', and it is by far my favourite song on the EP. It's fun, it's quirky, and is reminiscent of a The 1975 track; I LOVE it. 

Next we have 'I Don't Wanna Leave', which is the song that has an acoustic version, and both versions are beautiful, with a great beat and a perfect melody; everything is right with this song. The next track is 'Red Lights' and it shows off Butler's vocals beautifully, as well as showcasing the rest of the band's musical ability. The final track on the EP is the lead single 'Change for Love' which I heard a few weeks ago, and in my opinion, catches the band's sound and passion brilliantly. 

I was worried that the EP was going to be very 'samey', and I was going to be bored, but I was pleasantly surprised. However I do think that this EP is only a sample of the talent that this band has, and I think they need to bring their A-Game to the album, is going to be one to look out for. 

Remember the name 'Little Sea'. I think this band is going to be huge. They have the talent, the personality, and already have an impressive fanbase, spanning all over the world. 

I mentioned the band in a blog post I did at the beginning of the year, 'Who To Look Out For in 2015', and you can check that out here > http://musicglare.blogspot.co.uk/2015/01/who-to-look-out-for-in-2015.html. 

As usual, I will leave all links for the band below, and if you want to download the EP (which I highly recommend you do) you can so do here! smarturl.it/WYWY or https://www.jbhifi.com.au/music/browse/pop/with-you-without-you-ep/722900/

Until next time, 

MG 

xxx

Little Sea: 

Twitter > 

https://twitter.com/LittleSea

https://twitter.com/leightoncauchi

https://twitter.com/andybutler_

https://twitter.com/oliverkirby

https://twitter.com/dylanclark

Facebook > 

https://www.facebook.com/LittleSeaMusic

Tumblr> 

http://littleseaau.tumblr.com/

Instagram> 

https://instagram.com/littlesea

https://instagram.com/oliverkirby/

https://instagram.com/andybutler_/

https://instagram.com/leightoncauchi/

https://instagram.com/dylanzeevillain/

Me: 

https://twitter.com/musicglare

https://instagram.com/musicglare/

https://www.facebook.com/musicglare

http://musicglare.tumblr.com/