These past few weeks have been nothing short of a whirlwind and with the past few days seeming like the calm after the storm, I've finally had the opportunity to sit down and soak in some of the things that I haven't got to digest... which also means stumbling upon more good songs.

Dive – Tycho | Our Endless Numbered Days – Iron & Wine | Wincing The Night Away – The Shins

Funeral – Arcade Fire | Death by Sexy – Eagles of Death Metal | Heartbreaker – Ryan Adams

I've been stuck in a musical rut for so long, listening to the same songs on a daily basis and so I made it a mission to find some songs that are refreshingly addictive. Well these are the musical finds I've been meaning to share because the extra 3 GB space it took up in my iPhone is totally worth it. 

1. Dive by Tycho
Much like the album art implies, the entire tracklist is like riding the soft waves with total abandon. I've never pretty much appreciated tracks without lyrics before, but the melodies are really all that you need. I stumbled upon this a few weeks ago and I've found that it's great for when you're studying. It's not completely overwhelming, but it does tickle the senses. Adrift has become my personal favorite. It's the crowning track of the album. And because I'm naturally a curious cat, I did some research on what these sway-inducing tracks actually are. Its musical style is actually "chillwave" mixed by electronica artists and it's been around since the mid-2000's. The eccentric feel immediately got me hooked and it's amazingly multidimensional. 

2. Our Endless Numbered Days by Iron & Wine

I love this so much. This album has been around since 2004 and it's a shame it took me this long before I discovered it. I've only ever known one song by Iron & Wine and I've never been curious enough to look up their discography until now (woops). Imagine if your favorite cup of hot chocolate transformed into songs, because these would be it. Another thing I absolutely love about it is its paradoxical title which comes from the lyrics of another one of their songs called Passing Afternoon. "There are things that drift away like our endless, numbered days." It radiates this kind of peace that I'm in love with.

3. Wincing The Night Away by The Shins

I've always had a thing for indie-rock or any sub-genre of rock in general and this album had me at the first song. Their sound is much like The Smiths', however more diverse in terms of the musical style. The thing about it is that it never sounds monotonous. "Australia" and "Split Needles" are shamelessly on repeat!

4. Funeral by Arcade Fire

I've been seeing a lot of this band around the internet lately and I figured it's about time I gave them a shot. Of course the fact that they're an indie-rock band has already got me all "sold!", the album's tracklist is what completely engulfed me. Its energetic vibe will make you bob your head no matter how hard you try not to. The songs are dramatic and beautiful, yet light and airy. I like how I don't recognize all of the instruments used in the songs, but I've been paying more attention the drums. Also, I'm crazy about the album art! What a beaut. A lot of the songs I've used in my recent playlists come from this album too just because I like the variety of its sound.

5. Death by Sexy by Eagles of Death Metal

By the looks of it, this album doesn't seem to line up with the past albums I've mentioned. Sounds daunting, especially along with the album art. But it will end up surprising you. It's not some sort of satanic cult music; Eagles of Death Metal is your not-so typical all-American rock group with incredibly bad-ass songs that'll make you wanna dance around. If you like commercials, you'll probably hear one of their songs in an Axe commercial. Plus if you close your eyes with this album on full blast, you could almost imagine yourself with a leather jacket, riding a motorcycle to an old-school diner. And I dig it too much. Thanks to David for making me listen to Don't Speak and made me feel like I've found Jesus.

6. Heartbreaker by Ryan Adams

A lot of my friends who I shared this album with have told me that he sounds like the country version of John Mayer with "a shitload of harmonicas". I'm not sure I disagree. I've had this in my files for a couple of years now, but it's been recently unintentionally ignored and I haven't listened in such a long time. Do your ears a wonderful favor by listening to "Come Pick Me Up" and "Oh My Sweet Carolina". I like how the entire album almost feels untouched, it feels so raw and vulnerable and it's imperfectly elegant.

Resurrection

So I've decided to give my blog a make-over! After leaving it idle for so long (I think it's been accumulating dust), I wanted to bring it back. I wasn't entirely sure where my blog was going the first time I put it up. My thoughts were scattered and I wasn't entirely set on whether I wanted it to be a personal one or more of a communal thing, plus I experienced a major writer's block partly because of laziness and partly because of what I assume might be fear. Still not exactly sure what I was afraid of, but I'm working on getting over it.

Because I feel like I've grown over the past year, I figured the previous appearance of my blog didn't suit me anymore so I went for the minimalist approach - less colors and more read-worthy content. It took me a couple of hours before I could finally let go of the old template. How can changing templates be so liberating yet so traumatizing at the same time?!

So while I'm here, I might as well give a few updates. 

I've been enjoying our Majors recently as I've never felt so much like a Communication Arts student before! I'm really being exposed to some incredibly intellectually-stimulating things and they've really been inspiring me. Although it requires some heavier-duty thinking, analyzing, and conceptualizing, it's a challenging experience I can't get enough of.

In over a month's time, I'll be turning 17 and I'm not sure how I feel about that. I feel like I've reached the age where there's no more fucking around and I've really got to pull myself together because being 17 entails a lot more responsibilities... and emotional stability. 

These past few months have been really productive and I plan on getting some poems done, and indulging in some more art because frankly, my academics are the point of which my world revolves around now. So I'm comping up with ideas for the next posts - a lot of words and stuff I've been meaning to share! 

Hooray I'm glad this is alive again!