All Time Low concert (review)

Venue: o2 Academy, Birmingham

Date: 28/01/2012

Support acts: We Are The In Crowd & The Maine

You’ll like if you like: Fall Out Boy, Mayday Parade, You Me At Six

Rating: * * * * *

On 28th January, I went to see All Time low at the o2 Academy in Bristol. Although I’ve seen a few concerts at this venue before, there are 2 main rooms (I think!) and I’ve only ever been into the smaller of the 2. If I’m honest, the smaller room is a lot better as you can get closer to the band and it feels more personal, but I also love the feel of getting near a band that can fill a larger arena.

My friends and I got to the venue early as we knew how dedicated ATL’s fan base is, we were right to do so as there was already a huge queue right down the road when we got there, 3 hours before the doors even opened! It was freezing waiting outside, but we enjoyed it as a few small bands came round to hand out their flyers, such as ‘8^th Time Luckie’ who were really friendly and helped keep our spirits up.

As my friend’s on o2, we got to skip some of the queue, which was really great. However, the queue for the cloakroom inside was huge and prevented us from getting straight to the front.

We Are The In Crowd were first on. I’m a huge fan of this band, having seen them support Mayday Parade early last year, and was really excited about seeing them again. They didn’t sing any of their best songs from the album ‘Guaranteed to Disagree’, but they still put on a good show, getting the crowd really hyped up. The Maine were also really good, I haven’t heard many songs by them but I’ll definitely be checking them out soon!

All Time Low came out quite quickly, jumping around the stage and really getting the audience involved. Jack completely stole the show, but I’m not complaining! They were all really funny, telling stories in between their songs and talking to the crowd. The highlight for me was Alex’s solo performance of ‘Remembering Sunday’ which is one of my favourite songs and sounded absolutely beautiful. At one point, Jack bought out these inflatable ‘boob hands’ which, after playing around with, he threw out into the crowd. After a bit of fighting with the girls next to us, we managed to get one of these!

I’ve been to a lot of concerts, avoiding a lot of mosh pits, but I must say, this was the roughest crowd yet. I left with a few bruises, after being thrown around whilst the crowd rammed forward between support acts, to try to get closer to the stage. Although, I shouldn’t complain as I did manage to get right near the front!

All-in-all, it was an amazing night. All Time Low are incredibly talented, Alex has such a strong voice for that type of band and they all put in an amazing effort. The support acts fitted in perfectly and everyone seemed to love them. They said they’ll be touring again this summer, and, if this is your scene, I’d really recommend you get tickets as soon as they’re out, you won’t want to miss it!

Wasting Light, Foo Fighters (review)

Release date: 12/04/11
Track listing: (click here)
You'll like if you like: Nirvana, Red Hot Chili Peppers
Rating: * * * *
I have to be honest when I say I’m not a huge Foo Fighters fan, I mean, I’ve always liked their music but this the first of their albums I’ve actually bought. I’d heard songs such as ‘Walk’ and ‘Rope’ on the radio and when I saw this on sale for only £5 I just had to buy it.
It’s a pretty average album cover, a plain back background with pink writing and the members faces faded over each other in a sort of oval shape. The whole effect’s quite strange but works with the album. I was disappointed to find there were no lyrics written in the case insert as I believe lyrics are the key to an amazing song and always like to read these before listening to the album. Instead, there’s some almost ‘pop-art’ style photos of the band performing and playing in the studio.
Highlights of the album include ‘Walk’, ‘Arlandria’ and the lesser-known ‘These Days’.  This is the band’s 7^th album and I think the decision they made to go right back to basics was perfect for this record as the songs have a raw-edge to them that you don’t seem to find very often and you can really hear the emotion in Grohl’s voice.
However, the reason this album didn’t get a 5 star review is due to the fact it took me a good few listens to really appreciate the album, with songs such as ‘Bridge Burning’ that maybe took the edgy ‘rawness’ a step too far.
All-in-all, I would probably recommend this album to my friends as there are some really great, original songs that deserve a listen. I can’t compare to any of their old albums (as I haven’t heard any) but this is a strong 4 star record and one that I won’t be getting tired of any time soon.

Rimmel Flash Eyeliner (review)

(This last photo was taken after a day of wearing the eyeliner, as you can see, the colour's still strong and the line hasn't been broken, the small smudges are hardly noticable)

What they say: Versatile felt tipped pen liquid liner, easier to apply than traditional liquid liners, continuous and controlled flow, fine-tip for precise lines, long-wearing, smudge and transfer resistant.

Colour: Black

Rating: * * * * *

There’s nothing worse than a bad eyeliner, drawing the perfect line for it to be smudged within an hour, ruining your whole look. (Well, that’s what I think anyway.) So it’s really important to have a good eyeliner you can wear every day.  That’s where Rimmel Flash Eyeliner comes into things.

It’s not much to look at, a plain red with a black lid and block black writing with the Rimmel symbol. My one complaint would be that, on mine, the writing has rubbed off, but this isn’t really a huge problem.

I’ve always preferred a felt tipped pen as they’re normally easy to apply and get a good shaped line with, Rimmel Flash eyeliner has the perfect shaped tip, the fine end makes it easy to draw thin lines whilst, by using the whole pen, you can create an edgy thick line.

The colour comes out bold straight away, with no need for layering up. The best thing is, it stays this way for hours and hours. I rarely find the line has broken or blurred, admittedly, I occasionally find a few smudges in the crease of my eyelids, but this could be due to the amount of eye make-up I’m wearing that day.

All in all, I’d highly recommend this product to anyone. I rarely agree completely with what the manufacture says about their product, but I have to say, Rimmel have got it pretty spot on here.

2011, update etc

First of all, sorry I haven't posted a lot, I've been mega busy with the holidays but I'm going to correct that very shortly!

Some of my favourite buys of 2011:

Make-up:

• Clinique High Lengths mascara
• Cargo Lash Activator mascara
• Rimmel Lasting Finish 25 Hour foundation
• Rimmel Flash Eyeliner pen

Music:

• England Keep My Bones, Frank Turner
• What Did You Except From The Vaccines, The Vaccines
• Hold Me Down, You Me At Six
• Up Guards And At 'Em, The Pigeon Decectives
• Young Pilgrim, Charlie Simpson
• Ok there's been so many good albums this year I can't list them all!

Best Concerts: (ie every one I went to)

• Charlie Simpson
• Cee Lo Green
• Mayday Parade
• Scouting For Girls
• The Pigeon Decectives
• Katy Perry

Models Own 2-in-1 Lengthen and Curl mascara (review)

What they say: Designed to enhance the natural curl of your eyelashes and create a frame for your eyes. Our Curve 'V' Design brush promotes length and curl.

Colour: black

Rating: * * *

I have a specific mascara that I tend to always buy, but I got given this one in a ‘Model’s own’ gift bag at the clothes show and, as my current mascara is starting to run out, I thought I’d try it out as more of an ‘everyday’ item.

I love the appearance of this mascara, the bold pink colour really stands out and the writing is simple yet affective. Based on looks alone, I’d probably give this a 5* rating.

Normally, I buy comb brush mascaras, as I think they work more effectively to separate and lengthen lashes, so this is quite a new experience for me. The brush is curved, in an attempt to curl the lashes, but I just found that, with the thick bristles, this just made it harder to use.  It does lengthen my eyelashes and give them volume, but it can tend to get a bit clumpy and cause my lashes to stick together.

Overall, I personally wouldn’t buy this item again, but it does the job as everyday mascara and, for only £6, it won’t exactly break the bank.

(I’d like to add, that the photos show a huge increase in the length of my eyelashes, but I do have quite long lashes, it’s just they’re blonde so hard to see without any mascara on)

The Pigeon Detectives concert (review)

Venue: The Fleece, Bristol, England

Date: 21/11/2011

Support acts: All The Young & The Chevin

You’ll like if you like: The Cribs, We Are Scientists, The Wombats

Rating: * * * * *

On Monday 21^st, I went to see The Pigeon Detectives on their UK tour. I’ve never been to the venue (The Fleece) before so I didn’t know quite what to expect. From the outside, it looks like nothing more than a small pub, but once you get inside, the atmosphere is perfect for a gig like this. It’s quite a small room, with a small stage, but the best thing was there were no barriers so we were literally leaning against the speakers at the front!

The support acts were both really good, although the first band (The Chevin) was still sound checking for 10 minutes after the audience had arrived. I really recommend you check them both out as they sounded really good and I think they could go far.

The Pigeon Detectives were amazing, the lead singer, Matt, was great at getting the crowd going and jumped around the stage, even stepping on my hand at one point! I did feel a bit sorry for the other band members who didn’t really get to share the limelight though. They sang songs from all three of their albums, which was nice because some bands tend to forget about their old songs (which are sometimes the best!). The absolute highlight of my night was when Matt pulled me and my friend on stage to dance with him; he even serenaded us with ‘Don’t Know How to Say Goodbye’!

At the end of the concert, Matt handed my friend the set list and we also managed to get one of their drumsticks and a plectrum!

It was one of the best nights of my life, all the bands were great at getting the crowd going and I loved the atmosphere that you wouldn’t get in a bigger venue. So, if you want to have a really good night out, listening to some quality music, I highly suggest you look out for the next The Pigeon Detectives tour and book your tickets straight away!

Barry M, Touch of Magic Lip Paint (review)

This last photo was taken after eating, as you can see, the colour's hardly changed or smudged!
(Apologies for my poor webcam quality)

What they say: A waterproof formula with added Aloe Vera stays on for up to 8 hours. Depending on the alkali level of your lips, determines just how pale or rich the colour will go.

Colour: Green that turns bright pink!

Rating: * * * *

I bought this lipstick after a friend recommended it; I thought it looked really quirky and great for summer or a night out.

It applies smoothly, but I can’t say I notice the ‘added Aloe Vera’, as I still need to wear lip balm to prevent my lips from chapping.

Remember not to be put off by the bright green colour; it turns to pink as soon as it touches your lips! The colour stays strong for hours as, instead of smudging when you take a drink or lick your lips, the water seems to increase the brightness. (If you’re not looking for an overly loud colour, you can apply a smaller amount to the centre of your lips and rub it in with a finger or lip brush.)

My only complaint would be the design of the lipstick as it’s not the most comfortable to hold, but this is only a small issue and doesn’t affect the overall quality of the product.

Overall, I’d highly recommend this lipstick for its fun stay-put colour that’s perfect to make you stand out from the crowd; however you may get a few funny looks when your friends see you putting on a bright green lipstick!