Wayward Daughter - For the Keeping Review

Wayward Daughter are a duo of two girls - Lydia McAllister and Becky East. I have been watching Wayward Daughter on YouTube for a while now. I first 'discovered' them a year or so ago and fell inlove with them.

Wayward Daughter

2 years ago, Lydia's covered Apologise by One Republic on YouTube. She continued as a solo cover artist on YouTube for quite a while until a bit later in the year when she uploaded a cover of The Pretty Reckless's, You Make Me Want To Die which also featured Becky East on guitar.

With over 41K subscribers on YouTube alone, Wayward Daughter have grown their fan base around the world. 

Wayward Daughter's song 'For the Keeping' became a huge success when it was first released on YouTube last year. I thought to review this particular song because this is the piece that they have entered in the 'Gabrielle Aplin Tour' competition (information at the bottom of the review). 

For the Keeping, played by Becky and sung by Lydia is a beautiful song that is a perfect example of the reasons they deserve all of their success.

Becky's guitar is stunning and haunting in its playing. With literally no errors, the guitar carries the melody of the song by combining it quite subtly into the rest of the guitar piece. 

Becky is amazingly talented on the guitar, and if you listen to the song without watching the clip, you swear you could hear multiple guitars playing...but no, Becky's extremely precise and intricate playing carries the song and helps the overall theme of the song flowing. 

As well as the guitar, is Lydia's stunning voice. Writing the lyrics themselves, Lydia is perfect in all her notes, pronunciation and overall vocals. And it is her voice that really brings out the magic of the song with not only the words she is singing, but the way her voice flows in and out of the guitar part. It is this eb and flow that makes the song sound so smooth and haunting to listen to. 

The lyrics of the piece are stunning in their simplicity and are easily relatable. I think I especially love the lyrics of the song because of how true they seem, they are very personal words, and yet they generate such an emotive reaction from the audience - making the listeners find a personal meaning in the lyrics.

I am so happy that I found Wayward Daughter's music, I really do think that listening to their music is more like an experience than just a song. Their music isn't just something you want to have playing in the background, it is something you want to have your full attention on, which is what it truly deserves.

If you haven't already, go and check out Wayward Daughter, even if it isn't your style, I guarantee that if you give it the chance, you will really get something out of it.

AND ALSO GUYS!
If you haven't already, Gabrielle Aplin is doing that competition where you can vote for certain musicians to support her on tour, so it would be super great if you could vote for Wayward Daughter to support her! so follow these steps, it takes like a second guys.

1 - Go to this link!

http://www.gabrielleaplin.co.uk/livesupport/

2 - Select "London/Shepherd's Bush

3 - Click Wayward Daughter's "For the Keeping" thumbnail and click either Facebook or Twitter underneath to vote

IT LOOKS LIKE THIS!

4 - Tag @WDaughterBand in your votes so that they can follow you!

Check them out:
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/LydiaEvangeline
Website: http://waywarddaughterband.com
Blogspot: http://www.waywarddaughter.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WaywardDaughterBand?fref=ts
Twitter: https://twitter.com/WDaughterBand

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Lewis Watson Review

I was just watching some of Lewis Watson's old covers on YouTube and realised that I haven't, as of yet,  written anything about Lewis!
I'd firstly like to mention that this 'review' (if you can even call it that) is going to be extremely bias because Lewis Watson is my favourite artist as well as a real inspiration of mine...to tell the truth, he is the reason I joined YouTube in the first place haha.

(Lewis Watson (this is not my photo...I wish))

Lewis Watson is a UK musician, he joined YouTube mid 2010, playing a cover of a Bombay Bicycle Club's song, Swansea. Since then Lewis has become a sensation, building up his fan base to the amazing 61K (YouTube) subscribers he has today. 

Lewis has produced multiple EPs including 'It's got 4 sad songs on it btw', 'another 4 sad songs', 'The Wild' as well as his upcoming EP - 'Four more songs'.

I really respect Lewis Watson, not only as an artist, but as a person. I mean, I do not know him personally but I have been watching his videos and listening to his music for a long time, and even with the growing amount of fans he is getting and with his rapid success, he has managed to really stay grounded and not let all the success change him. And, not going to lie, but I think its for this reason that a lot of his fans seem to be really connected...and as cheesy as it sounds, a bit like a family. I think, the way Lewis Watson stays in touch with his fans, makes it really seem like we know him personally, although we don't, its nice to know that he really does appreciate and recognise his fans for all they have done.  

Despite the amount of shows that Lewis Watson is doing, and the amount of travel he is doing, he still manages to stay in touch with all his fans, whether that's via YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or his website. By doing this, it really shows that he loves his fans and appreciates them for everything they have done. 

I got the chance to see Lewis Watson early this year when he was on tour with Birdy and Lakyn Heperi, and he was phenomenal. Really and truly, he was professional yet very down to earth on stage. His stage presence was perfect and he captured the audiences attention so well. He was funny and charismatic, yet professional and captivating, which really is refreshing compared to some of the artists we see nowadays.

It is a little bit scary writing about Lewis Watson, as there is no way to put it all into words, and I am terrified to make a mistake in my explanations. He truly is a major inspiration of mine and many others, he has come so far in a matter of months and he should be more than proud of his well deserved success.

I think, to really understand where I am coming from...you'll have to check him out yourself (please trust me, you will not regret it)  -
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/HolyLoowis
Website: http://lewiswatsonmusic.com
- Stella xo

Photo used: http://www1.pictures.zimbio.com/mp/KZnT5q2tdvrl.jpg

Thelma Plum review

On the go
I'm currently sitting on the bus home listening to my music , and I couldn't help but think that the lovely Thelma Plum doesn't get nearly as much rave as she deserves.
Thelma Plum is an acoustic artist who rose to her quick success after being featured on Triple J.

(Thelma Plum and me at the Woodford Folk Festival 2012)

I got the opportunity to meet Thelma Plum and see her play acoustically live at the 2012 Woodford Folk Festival in Queensland Australia and have been a fan ever since.
She was breathtaking in her performance and inspirational in person.

Thelma's beautifully unique and lovely voice is one of angels. She writes her own songs and based them around her everyday life, but don't let this put you off! The lyrics she writes are relatable yet magically unfamiliar, and there is something almost mesmerising about the way she has created her songs.

In my personal opinion she is one of Australia's most talented and most creative artists.
Thelma Plum is a reasonably new artist, but this is not a sign of inexperience or naivity...Thelma shows great elegance, grace and careful thought throughout her music and is a definite artist to keep your eye out for in the future.
- Stella xo

Thelma's Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thelmaplum
Thelma's soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/thelmaplum
Thelma's Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/user/thelmaplum?feature=

Gabrielle Aplin EP - Panic Chord.

So I thought that, to start off this blog, I would begin with a review of Gabrielle Aplin's new EP 'Panic cord'.

Gabrielle Aplin is a singer songwriter from Wiltshire England. Starting as a youtube cover artist in 2009, Gabrielle has risen in the charts and now has a well deserved (still rising) number of over 100,000 fans worldwide.

(Gabrielle Aplin - Panic cord EP)

Her new EP is a fantastic example of her unique talent.Her newly released EP 'Panic Cord' caught my attention of course. I have been a fan of Gabrielle for a number of years, and seeing her open for Ed Sheeran in his Australian tour late last year was both inspiring and amazing, her performance being beyond perfection.

This EP consists of the tracks;

1. Panic Cord

2. Dreams (W/ Bastille)

3. Panic Cord (Hucci remix)

4. Please don't say you love me (Cyril Hahn remix)

I'd firstly like to mention that although these songs have been around for a little bit already, there is something magical about the way the EP has been so carefully put together that makes it more like an experience than just a disc of music.

(Still shot from Gabrielle Aplin's 'Panic Cord' film clip)

The first song, Panic Cord, was released a while back and was a favourite of mine for a solid while. This song is beautiful, and even if you're not a fan of the style of music, it's easy to admit that Gabrielle has a lot of talent.

The song became very popular, the film clip, being released 1 month ago, has already received a crazy 1,103,692 views. It is easy to say that this song is simple for young/teenage girls to relate to as it is filled with very truthful and personal lyrics and themes. Kudos to her for that.

I like this song being on the EP, because I find this song is the most similar to a lot of her other music than the rest of the songs on this EP. Maybe it's me not wanting to deal with change, but this is my favourite style that has come from her, so I think I really expected to hear a lot more of this style on the EP.

This EP, quite obviously is named after this song, this being a reason to it being the main song on the EP.

(Gabrielle Aplin and Bastille - Dream (Fleetwood Mac cover)

The second song is Bastille and Gabrielle Aplin's  cover of Fleetwood Macs song Dreams. I'm a bit iffy on my opinion of this song, I mean, it is quite obviously an amazingly structured song, and although being quite different from a lot of the acoustic work that Gabrielle Aplin usually does, she and Bastille have created something really interesting. I find this song very spiritual in an almost psychedelic way, which I do really love. Although I am personally not in love with how they have covered the chorus of the song, I do love the verses and Gabrielle sounds beautiful and magical the whole way through the song, so really, props to her for pulling it off, because she REALLY has. It was such a bold move to cover a Fleetwood.

The third and fourth songs of the EP are both remixes of Gabrielle Aplin's original songs. I personally am into a lot of the more acoustic sounding songs, so although they are really good, they just aren't my taste. I'm sorry if your opinion differs, they are amazing, just not my personal favourites.

The first of the two is a Hucci remix of Panic cord, and I think this is my favourite of the two. I like this song the most because although its such a crazy and unique remix, the melody of the original song can be heard throughout it, so it's almost like a memory or something, its a very hallucinatory song almost.

The second song of the two, being the Cyril Hahn remix of Please don't say you love me (PDSYLM), is also very unique to the original although in some of it, it's hard to tell it is even a remix of PDSYLM. I don't know, this might be your type of thing, but it's not my personal favourite. I think, because the original of the song is such a stand out to me, I think that it shouldn't be messed with. Despite saying this though, if you MUST mess with PDSYLM, this is how it should be done. It is unique and puts a really interesting twist on the original. So i do respect it because even though it's not really my thing, it is an amazing remix of the song that is definitely worth a listen. 

Overall I think this EP was a real change from Gabrielle's usual more acoustic songs, and I'm not saying that in a negative way. I was pleasantly surprised by the emotional and 'spiritual-ness' of this EP. I do think that if you're a fan of Gabrielle's or a fan of any of the other artists featured in 'Panic cord', oh  screw it, no matter what you're a fan of, go check this girl out. She is an amazing talent and you wont be disappointed.

Gabrielle Aplin has a really bright future ahead of her, there is a link to her website below, so check her out there. On that website you can find all the links to itunes where you can purchase this EP and/or any of her other music. Also on this website is a sneak preview of the EP, so go give that all a listen and feel free to comment your opinion. And of course be sure to keep your eyes and ears open for her in the future, because we will be hearing a lot more of this bright new talent. 

Tell me your opinion.

- Stella xo

Gabrielle Aplin website: http://www.gabrielleaplin.co.uk