Linkin Park Living Things Album Review

Like many other true Linkin Park fans, I anxiously awaited the day when I could finally hold the new album, Living Things, in my hands. Before I went on my vacation to Europe, I pre-ordered Living Things in the Atlanta airport on my iPod. I had plans to download it the day I returned to America (June 26th) during my layover. When I was in Switzerland, I walked into a tiny CD store. I looked through the entire CD selection and finally found the Linkin Park tab. Since I am short (five feet), I had to stand on my tip-toes to reach it. To my surprise, there was only one CD under the tab. (drum roll, please)! It was Living Things!! I was so excited and I immediately ran to the register and kept thinking "It isn't even out in America yet!" I found a cheap CD player and began to listen. It most definitely exceeded my expectations.

1. Lost in the Echo - Such a great album opener. Mike's raps are full of truth, vividness, and emotion. Chester's Vocals work so well with Mike's. This song reminded me of When They Come For Me from A Thousand Suns.
2. In My Remains - The way Chester sings through the song and the one line that Mike sings are just absolutely beautiful. The beginning reminds me of Crawling and the sound reminds me of a slower version of One Step Closer both from Hybrid Theory.
3. Burn It Down - Even though I knew this song before the album came out, it still impressed me with the way it fit perfectly in the middle of tracks two and four. Chester's vocals are raw and Mike's part is one of the best lines on the entire album. This song reminded me of Somewhere I Belong from Meteora.
4. Lies Greed Misery - I also knew this song before the album came out. Mike's opening rap is my favorite on the album and Chester's screaming at the end is drop dead SEXY! I was looking for an old song to compare this to, then I realized this song has Hybrid Theory written all over it. This song is one of my all time favorites.
5. I'll Be Gone - The chorus is amazing. This song reminds me of "Burning In The Skies" from A Thousand Suns and Given Up and Wake from Minutes To Midnight
6. Castle Of Glass - Mike's vocals are so powerful. Chester's backing vocals are so meaningful. The lyrics in this song have such a powerful meaning. "I'm only a crack in this castle of glass." I feel like countless people can relate to this strongly. It reminds me of In Between, Leave Out All The Rest, Shadow Of The Day, and Valentine's Day, from Minutes To Midnight Easier To Run, and Breaking the Habit, from Meteora and Iridescent from A Thousand Suns
7. Victimized - One of the fastest and most upbeat songs on the album, for sure. It is my personal favorite. Chester's screaming is where it is at. It reminds me of Waiting For The End and When They Come For Me from A Thousand Suns
8. Roads Untraveled - These lyrics honestly made me cry when I heard them. "Weep not for roads untraveled. Weep not for sights unseen. May your love never end and if you need a friend, There's a seat here along side me." I cried for a good five minutes when I heard that. It was really moving. Chester and Mike really know how to harmonize. It reminds me of In Pieces from Minutes to Midnight
9. Skin To Bone - I do not really have an opinion on this song.
10. Until It Breaks - I love love LOVE Mike's rap in the intro. It is phenomenal. Brad's vocals are something new to this album and I think he should sing more! He is great! This song reminds me a great deal of A Thousand Suns especially When They Come For Me and Waiting For The End.
11. Tinfoil - Nice instrumental. Reminded me of The Catalyst from A Thousand Suns
12. Powerless - This song really made me reminisce on Minutes To Midnight especially In Pieces and The Little Things Give You Away. It also reminded me of Robot Boy from A Thousand Suns. I have listened to this album over 10 times now and it gets better each time. Linkin Park writes great lyrics and they did a great job reminding me of why I fell in love with them in the first place. :) Happy Listening! - kinsey!

Justin Bieber Believe Album Review

While I was in vacation in Europe, I knew the new Justin Bieber album would be coming out. So when I got to our hotel just outside of Venice, Italy, I immediately paid for my internet connection and got on iTunes. It seemed to take forever to actually download because my connection kept going out, but I was patient and I was determined. So, I waited. When it finally downloaded it was so late at night, I waited until the next morning to actually listen to it since I had an 11 hour bus ride ahead of me. I was excited.

1. All Around The World - I absolutely love this song. It is so catchy and I can hear the significant change in Justin's voice and I really like. Ludacris has a really good part as well. 
2. Boyfriend - I heard this song before the album came out. It is so catchy and it is one of those songs that I play really loud out of my car. If I ever had to do karaoke, I would belt this song out. No Joke. This is one of my favorite songs on the album
3. As Long As You Love Me - I love the way Justin sings "as long as you l-l-l-l-l-l-l-l-l-l-o-o-o-o-o-o-v-v-v-v-e-e-e-e-e me" and I love the hand claps. I normally do not like Big Sean's voice, but in this song, I love his part. 
4. Catching Feelings - The lyrics are sweet but this song is a little slow for my taste. But I do like the fact that it offers a nice break from fast songs. 
5. Take You - This song is super fun and it makes me want to get up and dance.
6. Right Here - Well since I do not like Drake, I did not like this song too much. I really think Drake sang more than Justin. Something just does not sound right with it. This is the one song I skip every time it comes on. Sorry, Drake. 
7. Fall - This is such a sweet song. I love the beginning of this song. It makes me tear up every time I hear it. I really think every girl would faint if a guy sang this to her. I know I would. This is the best love song I have heard in the last few years. 
8. Die In Your Arms - I like this song but I think it is really cheesy. I do not really know what else to say about it. 
9. Thought Of You - I love this song. But, his voice seems really high pitched. The lyrics are a little creepy, though. But the chorus is amazing. 
10. Beauty And A Beat - I will start this off by saying that I detest Nicki Minaj and I hate songs that start off with "Young Money". We get it. This song does have some potential just because of Justin. The sound effects are awesome. The reference that Nicki made about Selena was... interesting. This is definitely a club song. It would have been so much better without Nicki. 
11. One Love - I like the chorus. There is not much to say about this song. 
12. Be Alright - I have no opinion on this song. It was not bad but it was not good. 
13. Believe - Justin's tone of voice in this song really reminds me of With You In Your Dreams by Hanson. This song is definitely the most emotional song on the entire album. I love the "Standing Tall" lyric. I also love when artists write title tracks. The background singers did a great job. 
14. Out Of Town Girl - This is my favorite song on the entire album. It makes me want to do some insane dance moves even though I am not a graceful dancer. Did I mention it was my favorite song?
15. She Don't Like The Lights - I think this was probably written about Selena. I like it. I love how he said "Damn" in the song.
16. Maria - This song literally made me laugh out loud. It is so funny because it is true! The "that's not my baby!" lyric about made me fall out of my bus seat. I gained so much respect for Justin for writing this song. That is so punk rock.
17. Love Me Like You Do - I think this is a good closing song, but it is probably my least favorite on the album. 

I can tell Justin did a lot of growing up for this album. It sounds more mature and more masculine sounding that any of his other albums. I think Justin succeeded in, as he says, "Converting the haters." Justin Bieber, I salute you.

A Day To Remember, Rise Against, and Title Fight 4/26/12 Birmingham, Alabama

Last April, when I saw A Day To Remember, I never expected that almost one year later, I would be seeing them again. The day I found out they were coming to Alabama, I was so ecstatic. It was already an important day because my favorite football team, The Alabama Crimson Tide, was in the National Championship (Roll Tide). Rise Against and Title Fight were also with them. I was super stoked for Rise Against, too, because I they were on my bucket-list of bands to see. So when the day finally came to go to the show, I could not focus. I had to take a practice AP English exam and getting through that was already difficult not including the fact that I was going to see one of my favorite bands a few hours later. Upon my arrival to the venue, I met up with a few of my friends and we waited patiently for the gates to open. When they opened, we all ran for it. We were almost in the front, which was good enough for us. The first band that came on was Title Fight. I had heard of them because of an iTunes single of the week. Their opening song, “Shed”, was extremely energetic and LOUD. During the opening line, the first things I see are this guy flying through the air and all of these random crowd surfers flocking towards the stage. Honestly, that is one of my most memorable concert moments because it was unexpected and just flat out awesome. They also played
GMT (Greenwich Mean Time)
Loud And Clear
Neck Deep
Dreamcatchers
Symmetry
Youreyeah
Flood of ’72
Introvert
Coxton Yard
Memorial Field
27
No One Stays At The Top Forever
Stab
I will be seeing them again in Warped Tour in Atlanta and I am stoked. After Title Fight, it was time for A Day To Remember. It was really hard to contain my excitement. When Jeremy McKinnon ran out on stage, he yelled “ALABAMA” really loud. It gave me chill bumps. They opened with The Downfall Of Us All. I love how ADTR always involves the crowd. It makes their shows that much more exciting and memorable. Afterwards, they played
A Shot In The Dark
I’m Made Of Wax, Larry. What Are You Made Of?
My Life For Hire
All Signs Point To Lauderdale
2nd Sucks
You Be Tails I’ll Be Sonic
It’s Complicated
Homesick
Better Off This Way
Have Faith In Me
All I Want
The Plot To Bomb The Panhandle.
During Lauderdale, ADTR started throwing toilet paper into the audience. During 2nd Sucks, they told the crowd to start moshing and throwing people around, much to the security’s dismay. During It’s Complicated, they fired off a T-shirt gun. And During Homesick, Jeremy got into a huge ball and started rolling in the crowd. At the end of their set, I caught two guitar picks and one of the security guards handed me the set list. Needless to say, I was so ecstatic that I almost cried. After ADTR, it was time for Rise Against. To be honest, I really did not know a lot of new R.A. songs, but I managed. They played
Survivor
Ready To Fall
Collapse (Post – Amerika)
The Good Left Undone
Broken English
Help Is On The Way
Disparity by Design
Drones
Re-Education (Through Labor)
Blood To Bleed
Satellite
Paper Wings
Prayer of the Refugee
Audience of One
Swing Life Away
Make It Stop (September’s Children)
Give it All, Midnight Hands
The Strength to Go On
Savior.
Audience of One and Swing Life Away were performed acoustically. Swing Life Away was so beautiful that it made me cry. On the other side of the venue, there was a carnival of sorts going on. One of the security guards told me that ADTR was hanging out there, so I left right before Savior came on and went to investigate. When I got there, I saw Kevin and Josh. I was filled with the utmost joy. I got a picture with Kevin and we talked for a bit before he had to go back to the bus. That definitely made my night ten times better than it already was. I could even still hear Rise Against from where I was. Afterwards, I went home and I was thankful that I did not have school the next day. I am so thankful for weather days. :)

PEARL JAM 20!

I will post a blog of my own later. But for now read this. http://www.voorale.com/index.php/Music-Plus/pearl-jam-fest-features-guest-spots-by-chris-cornell-and-others.html and http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/musicnightlife/2016138580_pj20.html

Steve Miller 7/2/11

Steve Miller was good. There were a lot of drunk people and some druggies :p I found it humorous.
The setlist:
Jet Airliner
Take the Money and Run
Abracadabra
The Stake
Swingtown
Further On Up The Road
Shu Ba Du Ma Ma
Fly Like An Eagle
Dance Dance Dance
Serenade
Livin in the USA
Rock n me
Jungle love
The joker

there might have been a few more but that is all I can remember.
Go to www.youtube.com/user/concertgirl72223 for the videos :)

Eddie Vedder and Glen Hansard 7/1/11

Fast-forward a few years from 2009 to 2011. If someone had asked me if I thought I would have ever seen Eddie Vedder solo again, I would have said no. The day my mom told me, she said “Kinsey, we are going to see Eddie Vedder in St. Louis because he is not coming anywhere closer. Oh, and it is 4th of July weekend.” I was so excited because I remembered how much fun I had at the last Eddie shows I went to. The show was at The Fox Theatre. Once again, you were not allowed to have a camera and we had to sit down. But that was ok. When we got inside, we went to our seats. We were about 15 rows back from the stage on the floor, which is a really good seat. But in that venue, there is no bad seat. Glen Hansard, from the band The Swell Season, was the opening act. I do not know any of his songs and I cannot tell you which songs he played other than the one Pearl Jam song that he played a snippet of, which was Smile. Not going to lie, that was pretty freaking cool. Then it was time for Eddie. He walked out while Waving Palms was playing in the background and the crowd went crazy. He sat down in his chair and played Can’t Keep. I was not a big fan of this song on Riot Act but it was my favorite on his newest album. It really set the mood of how this show would turn out. Then he played Sleeping By Myself, Without You, Goodbye, You’re True, Light Today, Trouble, and Sometimes. Then he played I Am Mine. My cousin and I freaked out because that is our song. Following I Am Mine, he played Thumbing My Way. I was so excited because that is one of my favorite PJ songs. I feel sorry for the two guys sitting next to us because it is not every day one goes to an Eddie Vedder concert and sits next to a 15 and 16 year old freaking out over their favorite Pearl Jam songs. After TMY, he played Driftin’, and Betterman. Betterman definitely got the crowd going. Everyone around us was dancing and singing, including my cousin and myself. Then he continued with Far Behind, Long Nights (played with Glen Hansard) and Guaranteed. After this, he played Rise. Before he actually played the song, he started talking to the sign language interpreter. He kept telling her funny, but provocative things to sign and she would do it. It made everyone would laugh. He dedicated Rise to her. After that, he played Just Breathe and dedicated it to someone he knew that was expecting a baby. When he played Just Breathe, it made me cry. That is just an emotional song for me. Then he played Elderly Woman. That song always gets the best crowd response. Then he played one of Molly’s favorite songs, Unthought Known. She slapped me in the arm because she was so excited. Then he did ARC. I was so excited and I started crying again because it is just a beautiful live song. He came back and encored with Wishlist. Of all the songs he could have played during that big moment, he played Wishlist. That is my least favorite Pearl Jam song ever. But I am not complaining. After WL, he played Immortality. Of course, he messed up the words in the beginning like he always does. This song got a good crowd response as well. Then he played several more songs with Glen Hansard. These songs were Sleepless Nights, Society, and Falling Slowly. Before the show started, Molly and I were talking about songs we wanted Eddie to play. All she wanted to hear that entire night was Last Kiss. When we checked earlier set lists, that song was nowhere to be found so we eventually forgot about it. Well, as luck would have it, the next song he played was Last freaking Kiss. If you were in the crowd that night, you probably heard the squeal of an excited 16 year old followed by a wail of pain from a 15 year old that just got slapped on the arm from too much excitement. He then played So You Wanna Be A Rock N Roll Star, Lukin, and Porch. These three songs got the crowd on their feet and the whole place was rocking out. It was awesome. Then it was time for the second encore. He came out and did Hard Sun with Glen Hansard. He walked out and came back and closed the night with Dream A Little Dream. That is one of the sweetest songs ever. This show got me excited because at some point during the show, Eddie mentioned something about The Pearl Jam 20th anniversary show. Heck yes.

Seether, Adelitas Way, Kopek, and Angels Fall 6/7/11

What do you get when you are in a room with 300+ people and no AC? You get hot and sweaty. But, by having no AC it made the show all the more memorable. The first band was called angels fall. I'm not exactly sure where they are from, but they are a new band. They dropped a roll tide and the crowd either cheered or booed. (I cheered happily. RTMF!:)) Their album is coming out soon. They had one really catchy song "drunk enough" and I expect to hear a lot more from them soon. Then Kopek came out and they were ok. They were from Dublin, Ireland. They played "white collar lies", "love is dead", and cocaine chest pains. CCP was their first single when they came to America. LID was their second. Then Adelitas Way came on. I was so fired up for them! I had only seen them once prior to this show and I knew that I wanted to see them again. They have great stage presence, their performances are super energetic, and they involve the audience. They played sick, scream, cage the beast, invincible and a few new songs I didn't know. Their new album came out that day. After they played, I went to go meet Rick (singer). I thanked him for inspiring me with his music and I told him I've been a fan since day one. He thanked me profusely. Then it was time for seeether. They played
Gasoline
Needles
Pig
Fine Again
Driven Under
Broken
Humphree Or Die (drum cover)
Fur Cue
Heart-Shaped Box
Breakdown
Country Song
Rise Above This
Fake It
Remedy