Memories Of The Light In Your Eyes, Can Take Me Back In Time

Yellowcard

Yellowcard has been around since 1997! They have some really popular songs such as Ocean Avenue, Only One, and Lights and Sounds. I even remember when some of those were played at middle school dances haha! One of their signatures is their violinist. He has a role in each song and it is one of the things that gives Yellowcard their recognizable sound. Anyways, Yellowcard took a hiatus from 2008 to 2010 and then returned by releasing their album When You're Through Thinking, Say Yes this past year. To make their return even bigger, they released an acoustic version of that album a week ago.

To go along with the acoustic record, Hopeless Records released a YouTube video that contains all of the songs from the record. The video itself is about 37 minutes long; however, they used YouTube's "closed caption" function so that all you have to do is click on the title of the song you want to listen to and it will take you straight to that section of the video. It is really cool and I hope that more bands do something similar in the future! 

With the video being so long, I understand the difficulty of listening to all of it but I would definitely recommend listening to the tracks Hide and my personal favorite, Hang You Up. Hang You Up also features guest vocals from one of my favorite female vocalists, Cassadee Pope from Hey Monday! Again, I strongly recommend checking out those two songs or even listening to the whole album if you like to listen to music while studying or something! It is great and I hope that you enjoy it as much as I do!

One last thing. I know you are all busy but if you get a chance, let me know what you think about the whole YouTube video release of the album. Is it a good or bad idea from a business stand point? What about the use of the closed caption function? I just want to know your opinion of the idea!  

-Andrew

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Coffee Shop Soundtrack

Day 5's Pick: Coffee Shop Soundtrack by All Time Low

The band All Time Low originally started as a bunch of high school guys wanting to make a Blink-182 cover band. By the time they had graduated high school, they had already signed with their second record label, Hopeless Records. They have since released five studio albums and are now signed to the record label, Interscope.

My love for All Time Low is very bittersweet. I love their guitar tones, and catchy lyrics but I really dislike what they stand for and how they act. Their shows are energetic and killer to be at, but girls legitimately bring extra bras that they write messages on and throw at them, and the band collects them and hangs them from their mic stands. It is disgusting. Not to mention their language on stage. I went to one of their shows in Chicago with some of my friends and I have never heard the F bomb dropped so many times in a two hour time span. Ironically enough, it was one of the most fun shows I have been too. Weird, I know! I don't get it. It might have to do with the memories that came from it like our car getting towed in downtown Chicago, getting punched by a girl, and having a chance to talk to my celebrity musician crush, Cassadee Pope after the show. None the less, a lot of what they stand for and do on stage disgusts me but I love their sound and how talented they are.

Anyways, I digress. The song Coffee Shop Soundtrack was the song that introduced me to the band. Ever since then, I have been hooked. The video carries a humorous theme similar to the Forever The Sickest Kids video I posted yesterday. The song is pretty self explanatory so feel free to check out the videos.

Also, with his being the last installment of the Unplugged series, I decided to add a video of the band performing this song live as well. If you are interested in seeing the energy of their shows that I mentioned, then feel free to check it out. However, I will warn you that as I mentioned, they do like to use vulgar language so if that bothers you, I wouldn't watch that one! Also, due to Hopeless Records' policies, I can't post the original video on my blog, so here is a link for it: 

Coffee Shop Soundtrack Music Video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uMekefHmLVE&ob=av3e

I hope that you guys enjoyed this series! Check back soon to see what is happening Off the Record!

-Andrew

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She Likes My Bittersweet Love

Day 4's Pick is: "She Likes (Bittersweet Love)" by Forever the Sickest Kids

Forever the Sickest Kids is a group based out of Dallas, Texas. The guys rely on their catchy vocals and melodic guitar riffs to keep their jams stuck in your head. I almost can't even go an entire week without having one of their choruses stuck in my head for an afternoon or more!  Another big plus of this group is the humor they bring to their performances and videos. You can see this exhibited in both the music video and even the acoustic performance. In essence, they are a bunch of goofballs who love to play music which makes for some awesome entertainment!

The song "She Likes" is one of my favorites because it features vocals from an array of their members. At least four of the members have some vocals in the album version, and three of them have lines in the acoustic version which cool because it brings variety to the table. Caleb, the guitarist who sings first, has my personal favorite voice out of the group.  I also enjoy it because it features their humor that I mentioned before. So, check out the videos and let me know what you think! And don't forget to check back tomorrow for the final installment of my Unplugged Series!

Thanks for reading/listening!
-Andrew

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Your Voice Was The Soundtrack Of My Summer

Day 3's Pick: "Thunder" by Boys Like Girls 

The band Boys Like Girls is very intriguing to me. I loved their first album, but was very disappointed in the direction they decided to take off of stage and for their follow up release. They released a self-titled full length album in 2006 focused around catchy pop vocals followed by their synth heavy and auto-tune laden release Love Drunk in 2009. I also have heard a lot of rumors that as the group became more popular, the guys started acting like jerks which is unfortunately a common side effect of fame in the music industry.

On a brighter note, their lyrics relate to a lot of aspects of life ranging from relationships to the chaos of life.  Their first album was on constant repeat during the last month of my sophomore year of high school and throughout that summer. Some stand out tracks to me were "The Great Escape," "Hero-Heroine,"  and today's unplugged pick "Thunder."

Thunder was the first song that the group wrote together and it is one of my all time favorite songs! Especially the acoustic version. I don't want to bore you with a lengthy description of the song because vocalist Martin Johnson explains his meaning behind the song in the video of the acoustic performance; but I do want to give my reasoning as to why I like this song so much. I apologize for getting all soft on you here, but I feel like it captures the essence of what I want in a relationship/my future marriage. Kind of ironic I know, since the song is about a summer's love lost; but that's how I correlate it and that is just me. Feel free to ask me about this sometime if you want further detail and I would be glad to explain!

Sorry again for going all lame and cheesy there for a minute but I really hope that you enjoy both videos and have a great night!

Be sure to check back tomorrow for my second to last pick of the week!


-Andrew

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Give Me A Second Go

Day 2's Pick: "Second Go"by LIGHTS.

I first discovered LIGHTS when searching YouTube for Owl City stuff. She has such a unique style that not many artists can match, but carries a similarity to Adam Young of Owl City. LIGHTS was started in 2006 by 19 year old Valerie Poxleitner in her bedroom with a synthesizer and key-tar. She made a couple of low budget music videos and slowly built a fan base. Later on she released her first full-length followed by an acoustic EP, which is phenomenal and I would highly suggest it to anyone to check out on YouTube or Spotify if you have an account on there. It is just titled "LIGHTS Acoustic." She is also featured on the Silverstein song "The End" which I would also suggest to anyone! Overall I could just listen to her voice forever haha.

The music video for Second Go is awesome! The creativity in it just captures the essence of who LIGHTS is. Also, I personally think that it would be really fun to do something like that one day just for the heck of it, which makes the video more appealing to me! Well, I will stop rambling now but make sure to check out the videos and let me know what you think of her style!

Don't forget to check back tomorrow for another song!

-Andrew

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Where Are Your Guts To Fly?

Day 1's Pick: Skyway Avenue by We The Kings

Hello! This is the first installment of my week long series on "Unplugged" versions of some of my favorite songs. Each day I will post a little about one of my favorite songs and include the band's music video and an unplugged, or acoustic version of that song.

Getting things started off, I chose Skyway Avenue by the band We the Kings. We the Kings have provided some awesome memories in my life from driving around with friends blaring their album during my high school years to even getting dropped on asphalt while crowd surfing during their set at the 2010 Vans Warped Tour in Indianapolis and then later receive around 20 text messages from people who saw it happen. Needless to say, I definitely have a lot of stories that involve their music!


Their song Skyway Avenue was one of the first songs that got me into the Pop/Punk genre. I was getting ready for school one morning and the video for it came on FuseTV and I was hooked right away. The video is very creative and unique compared to a lot of others out there and that is what caught my attention. The acoustic video posted below it is from one of their acoustic sets at a Best Buy in Tennessee. Granted, Travis' voice isn't as good live as it is in produced recordings, but I love the emotion that he puts into his writings. I hope you like the videos, and remember to check back tomorrow for another one of my favorite songs unplugged!

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I Am Trying To Learn I Can Do Nothing On My Own...

First off, I would like to apologize for two things. Number one, I am sorry that it has been a little while since I have posted! Number two, typically I try to refrain from posting on this style of music and keep it to myself due to the fact that not many of you are into it; however, if you are into it, enjoy it! If you are not, please hear me out on this song even if you aren't big into the sound. It is definitely a lot harder of a style than who I typically post about but these guys have a lot to say, and they are saying it loud!

The band Close Your Eyes is on Victory Records, a secular label supporting bands like A Day To Remember, Silverstein, and Emmure. Even in this scene, they are still putting out their message and beliefs in their lyrics and their presence off the stage. To me, that is a huge deal and I give them mad props for staying strong in such a secular setting full of lust, degrading language, and a lot of other crap. They have a new album that drops this coming Tuesday (10/25/11) called Empty Hands and Heavy Hearts. To build up some hype for the album, they released their first single and music video off of it this afternoon. The track is called "Valleys" and the lyrics to this song are really solid!

Give it a listen, read the lyrics along with it (the lyrics are under the video) and remember that there is more to this life that we are living. We most definitely can't do any of this on our own. So why do we keep trying? I will never understand that, but I do know that this song reminded me that even in the struggles and times where we think we really screwed it up past a point of being fixable, He still loves us and won't let us fall to a place that we can't get back up.

I know that everyone is busy, but I encourage you to just stop for a minute or two after watching the video and reflect on the lyrics. Remember that we aren't in this alone.

VALLEYS 

I am starting to realize 

I can do nothing on my own 

Everything that I start to build crumbles into nothing

It's safe to say that no matter what 

I try and fall so short 

This sudden realizing break continues

to widen this space between You and I 

Chorus: 

Is there any point in trying to change

 no matter what I do 

It always stays the same 

But I feel like this has been made for me 

Is there something more that I cant see 

All I want is to let go 

I've tried so hard this pride still grows 

Just for once to breathe in deep 

And catch a glimpse of what You see in me

So many years of sorrow and pain

The bitterness I taste it takes hold of me

How can i forget the joy of the mountain tops

Down in the valleys 

Chorus: 

Is there any point in trying to change no matter what I do 

It always stays the same 

But I feel like this has been made for me 

Is there something more that I cant see

But Your ways are different and call out to me 

No matter what I do You always stay the same 

And I will have the choice to say 

There is more to this life I am living 

There is more 

There is more 

And in the midst of struggles of finding the man 

You call me to be 

Your love reminds me 

That though I am broken 

I am still standing 

I am still screaming 

Chorus: 

Is there any point in trying to change no matter what I do 

It always stays the same 

But I will have the choice to say 

There is more to this life I am living 

There is more to this life I am living 

There is more to this life I am living

On another note, starting this Sunday I will be doing a 5 part blog series on some of my favorite songs unplugged and played acousticly! So stay tuned!

-Andrew

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I Found Out, Finding Out Isn't The Worst Part...

Yesterday I posted an acoustic video by the band We Are The In Crowd and promised to post their most recent music video. Well here it is. This is the video for Both Sides Of The Story, which personifies their give and take lyric style between guy and girl vocals along with some good humor. It's pretty sweet. 

Side note: I apologize for the "F Bomb" towards the end...

-Andrew

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You Had A Piece Of My Heart, But Not Enough To Just Run Away...

We Are The In Crowd is an up and coming group that one of my friends told me about this summer. I really want to see them live but when ever they are close I just can't seem to get my schedule to work out. Anyways...this group brings a new dynamic to the pop rock genre by splitting vocals between a guy (Jordan) and a girl (Tay). Their songs typically carry the contrast of a girl and a guys perspective on a situation which is really cool because it's kind of like listening to a story in a refreshing way. Maybe I am just weird and think that, but either way, I find it to be really awesome. This is an acoustic performance of their song "Never Be What You Want" from the studio. Another plus of the video is that the lighting resembles Christmas time and I can't flippin' wait for that time of year! I am so ready to break out the lights and Christmas jams! Again, I digress. I hope that you enjoy Jordan and Tay's song as much as I do. Let me know what you think!

Also, tomorrow afternoon I will be posting their newest music video so you can hear their full band sound!

-Andrew

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Gotta Get You Out Of My Head...

Hello everyone! I hope you are having a great Sunday afternoon! I was out driving this morning and this guy's album came on my iPod while in shuffle mode. I realized that I hadn't listened to him in a while and so all of his stuff has been playing all morning, so I thought I would share some of it! He is a small artist who began his career by recording all of his stuff himself and now he is signed and put out this video a year and a half ago. I hope you enjoy it and this beautiful weather today!

-Andrew

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If It Means A Lot To You

I've got another cover video for you today! One of my friends showed me this cover of the A Day to Remember song and I love it! I will say that it isn't nearly as good as the original due to the fact that it is supposed to be a two part song with a guy and girl singing it; however, it is the best cover of the song there is thus far. I hope you like it!

- Andrew

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Lights Will Guide You Home...

This video was just posted a couple days ago, and has constantly been on replay. Fix You is my favorite Coldplay song, and I can honestly say that I think this version blows the original out of the water! Give it a listen and check out some of the other videos by both Tyler Ward and Boyce Avenue!

-Andrew

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Switchfoot "Vice Verses" Album Review

            A week ago today Switchfoot put out their eighth studio album titled “Vice Verses. This record brings a new style to the table for the 5-piece group from San Diego, experimental. This record touches almost every side of the rock spectrum throughout the track list.
            The opening tracks Afterlife, The Original, The War Inside, along with the album’s lead single Dark Horses all scream resounding echoes of the classic Switchfoot sound giving us some hope for what is to come. Reverb driven guitar riffs and vocals, along with heavy guitar feedback/ring out (especially in the record opener Afterlife) carry these tracks.  From here, the band divulge into the track Restless that sounds like it is straight off of an older O.A.R. album. Following Restless is a U2-esque track titled Blinding Light. This track somewhat resembles the band’s style from the Hello Hurricane record that exploded this past year, and is one of the best tracks that Vice Verses has to offer.
            The most diverse track on the record is Selling the News. If TobyMac and The Black Keys were to do a collaborative effort, I think it would sound like this. With it’s overdriven, syncopated opening bass line, and spoken verses it carries a very experimental sound and isn’t much like Switchfoot at all. Then again maybe that is what they were going for with this record.
            To conclude the record, the band puts out three tracks that resemble frontman Jon Foreman’s solo project. The thought provoking lyrics and ballad-like pace of the tracks Souvenirs, Vice Verses, and Where I Belong have the Foreman style stamped all over them.  It is safe to say that these three songs are hands down my favorite off of this record.

            Where I Belong concludes the record, crying out for our generation to wake up with lyrics like, “I wanna see the Earth shaking, I wanna see a generation finally waking up inside…I still believe we can live forever. You and I begin forever now…You and I, we’re here together now.”  Maybe it is time for us to wake up and realize that we are in this together and we should live that way. It’s time to break out of our selfish lifestyles that the world is reinforcing in us and actually live like the brothers and sisters we are.
            Overall, this record didn’t really appeal to me right out of the gate like The Beautiful Letdown or Hello Hurricane, but it is a solid album nonetheless and it is continuing to slowly growing on me. Those of you who have listened to it, what do you think? If you haven’t listened to it yet, give it a listen and let me know your thoughts! I would love to hear what everyone else thinks of the album, or even what your favorite song off of it is?  Use the comment section below to discuss!

I hope you are enjoying your week thus far!  Thanks for reading!

-Andrew

Track Listing: 

1. Afterlife

2. The Original

3. The War Inside

4. Restless

5. Blinding Light

6. Selling the News

7. Thrive

8. Dark Horses

9. Souvenirs

10. Rise Above It

11. Vice Verses

12. Where I Belong

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