Sleeping On Trash: A Collection of Songs Recorded 2005-2010 – The Wonder Years

are still cemented into their set list and would be a surprise if fans hadn’t heard it; however, the cover songs on the album and the old demos which are interesting to hear, will make the purchase worth i

via Sleeping On Trash: A Collection of Songs Recorded 2005-2010 – The Wonder Years.

Sleeping On Trash: A Collection of Songs Recorded 2005-2010 – The Wonder Years

The Wonder Years have come quite far in just a short couple of years; from touring in the U.K with other British pop-punk bands such as Save Your Breath and All or Nothing, to then landing support slots with bands such as Good Charlotte and Yellowcard, just to name a couple. ‘The Upsides’ too, was a far cry from their previous release ‘ Get Stoked On It’; bringing them to a more mature level and distinguishing a new sound that separated them from their past of writing songs about eating toothpaste and moshing for exercise, and focused more on the band vocalist’s – Soupy – battle with anxiety and depression.

This release of rarities and b-sides shows a noticeable contrast between their “old” and “new” sound; and it seems as if it’s been put together so they can showcase how much they have grown and matured as a group. It almost seems odd , that a track such as ‘Through Two Hearts” – a song written based on the death of Steve Irwin – could have been written by the same band who also wrote “Leavenhouse. 11:30”.  Moreover, tracks such as ‘Don’t Open The Fridge’ and ‘An Elegy For Baby Blue’, which came out on the Distances 7” some time before The Upsides was released, really shows the progress they were making from Get Stoked On It! to The Upsides.

Sleeping On Trash, is ideal for any fan who is looking to pick up songs they might have missed; an assortment of songs released through splits and EPs. Tracks such as “You’re not Salinger. Get over it” are still cemented into their set list and would be a surprise if fans hadn’t heard it; however, the cover songs on the album and the old demos which are interesting to hear, will make the purchase worth it.

I would recommend the record to fans that haven’t already previously found and bought the b-sides in the past; it’s an easy way to find songs you always wanted to hear, without having to look all over the internet for.

If you’re a fan of The Wonder Years, I’d say this isn’t too integral to your collection if you already have the songs but nevertheless, it’s something to have. It will be interesting to see how The Wonder Years progress in the future. 

John Green – The Fault In Our stars talk at Cadogan Hall in Chelsea.

Last night, I had the pleasure of seeing one of my favorite authors in person; John Green.

Accompanied by his brother Hank – both famous for their YouTube channel ‘Vlogbrothers’ – they entertained fans (Nerdfighters) with a Q&A session, songs from Hank and a reading from The Fault In Our Stars.

Following the talk, John and Hank both sat patiently for 3 hours, as they signed posters and books and tickets from Nerdfighters; they were friendly and engaging, and an all-round pleasure to meet.

I filmed some of the Q&A with Hank and John; also featuring special guest author: Maureen Johnson.

Defeater – ‘Live on BBC Radio 1′

 

Defeater are currently streaming their new EP ‘Live on BBC Radio 1′ over at thisisfakediy.co.uk.

This release sees them unleash some recordings that they undertook back in December 2011 at the prestigious Maida Vale studios. 

I’m not usually excited by live recordings as they are usually just similar versions of the songs I could listen to on their record; however, I thought this was worth sharing. 

The standout song for me on this E.P is ‘But Breathing’; the added guitar on this track completely separates it from its original acoustic sound but creates an uplifting and hopeful feeling. 

With their previous work consistently impressing me, I’m extremely eager to hear a new full length from them; as well as frontman Derek Archambault’s acoustic side project; Alcoa. 

World Book Night – Yay!

I discovered World Book Night this year, accidentally. I was going through charity shops on my local high street and someone I was with picked up The Road by Cormac Mccarthy and mentioned it was a great film. I bought it out of curiosity; the cover said something along the lines of “Take this, this is free” and mentioned World Book Night on it. Another friend, who loves books as well already knew about world book night and explained it to me. The concept to me, was just brilliant!

World Book Night is an Organisation that every year, recruits 20,000 volunteers to each hand out 20 books all chosen from a designated list of novels for free. The aim of this project is to not only give people who normally wouldn’t read, access to literature; but to also extend an act of kindness and hopefully, put a smile on someone’s face.

Obviously, questions are raised by this. Who pays for the publishing? Are authors okay with giving their works away for free? and so on. The simple answer is yes; the authors give away their books for free and waive their royalties, whilst the publishing companies pay for it.  Moreover, the publishing companies not only agree to pay for the printing of World Book Night editions of the novels but also help with additional funding.
I find it extraordinary; that publishing companies and authors would provide funding and also give up all royalties so they can provide people with a story.

I signed up to be a ‘Giver’ yesterday. My first choice is ‘The No1 Ladies Detective Agency’; my second being ‘Noughts & Crosses‘ and lastly ‘Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal?‘. My plan, if selected, is to try and hand out books at my college and encourage other students to read.

The choice of books are fantastic with a collection ranging from classics such as Treasure Island, to Young Adult novels such as Noughts & Crosses. There is something for everyone.

I genuinely urge anyone to get involved with this, it’s a great cause with all the best intentions.

Sign up here and for more information look here!

How much and what kind of an impact did social networks have on the US Election?

Whilst I start writing this, I should point out that it’s currently 7:46am. (Probably not when I eventually post it, however) Of course, like every other silly British person who had important things to do the next morning, I stayed up all night watching the results of the US Election unfold. So I have had no sleep and I’m writing this merely on some coffee and the post-election buzz I’m still experiencing.

Prior to the results or maybe even one or two days leading up to the day of voting, there was a real buzz on the internet about the election. As a British person, it felt strange seeing so many fellow Brit’s become so passionate about who they wanted to become the next President. I was seeing tweet after tweet, as well as blog posts of like minded British people posting their support for Barack Obama; and various ones urging everyone in the states to go out and vote. I myself have been a lot more knowledgeable and aware of this years campaign, more so than any other election since I’ve existed. I’ve done my research on both Obama and Romney and I’ve formed valid opinions on both candidates that could be well supported. Although, I am by no means claiming to be an expert in politics now.

According to the Huffington Post this morning, the percentage for youth turnout at this years election was up one percentage point from the 2008 elections. Moreover, Voters from the ages of 18-29 represented 19% of Tuesday’s elections, with 60% voting for Barack Obama and 36% voting for Mitt Romney. Although we won’t find out whether the turn out for young voters increased or decreased until much later on, I believe we will find a good increase.

Between 2008 and 2012, social networking has expanded to whole new levels. In 2008, we had Myspace and whilst it was a massive sensation, people were more about the music and socializing whilst using the website rather than for actual information.
However since then, we’ve had the up rise of sites such as Twitter and Tumblr. I feel they have played a vital part in getting youths to vote. Everyday, users on twitter who follow their favourite celebrities, have been seeing online campaigns to get US citizens out and voting. It seemed that this year, now more than ever, it was crucial to ensure people got out and voted.
Unlike any other campaign, this is the first year the internet has had a real substantial effect in influencing voter turn out. We haven’t had access to seeing regularly updated insights from public figures like now, so everyone was more likely to be influenced to head out.

Similarly, there’s Tumblr. I’m sure WordPress users know what Tumblr is, but for those who don’t; Tumblr is a Blogging site much like this but with a huge user network of teenagers and young adults, whose interface provides an easy and efficient way to post pictures, music, and text onto a dashboard where followers can see and reblog or respond and interact. Despite being a site that is particularly popular for reblogging ‘funny’ posts, it is also an extremely useful tool for spreading information. Admittedly, Mitt Romney himself hasn’t been a popular candidate on the site. Blogs such as this and this have become hugely popular and get off on mocking the Governor. But aside from mocking people, Tumblr has opened up and made information extremely more accessible to young adults than it would have been before. I myself, have seen hundreds of detailed posts exposing and detailing both Mitt Romney’s and Barack Obama’s policies. Barack Obama is somewhat of an icon on the site and if the election was based on Tumblr users, Barack Obama would win by a mile.

The point that I am making here is that information about these candidates have become so much more accessible now through sites like Tumblr and Twitter. Social networking seems to be helping young people to make more informed decisions about who they should vote for, and is giving them the actual confidence to go out and vote. Of course, this is not to say these social networking sites are informing and encouraging just young people. News reports are saying that in some states, turnouts have been at an all time high.

I think there are other contributing factors to the good turn out at the elections, but I certainly believe social networking has made  a good impact. And it’s not just the American’s who are being informed, the whole world is. It’s been clear since the run up to voting day that the British have been backing Obama. All over Twitter and Tumblr, I have seen messages of disgust about Mitt Romney by British people and messages urging the people across the pond to vote Obama.

With a combination of relentless campaigning by celebrities and regular tweeters, we all saw the message about how important it was to vote. Through information I’ve seen on the internet, I have personally learnt a lot. I learnt that America NEEDED to vote for Obama desperately, lest they go back a few hundred years and so did millions of others in America, thank god.  I don’t think I would have gained a lot of the information I know now if it wasn’t for social networks like I have mentioned, I am grateful for that. What I am also grateful for, is being able to talk about things like the US Election with other people my age and younger.

Hello Autumn!

It’s sad to say that I think this is the first year in my life that I have actually stopped to appreciate how stunning the Autumn time is.