Tag: myself

What day is it?

Hola everyone.

How are we all doing today? Getting through the quarantine okay? I’m gonna guess you’re all as fed up with all that #stayathome and people telling you to be happy and just read a book or something and shoving their sourdough bread in your faces. As for me, I’m so irritated, I think if someone tells me to try that relaxing yoga fitness lovey-dovey Ayurveda session one more time, I’m gonna freak out. But hey, people are bored and they are all probably as frustrated as I am, so I’m gonna let it pass. Just don’t show me your bread anymore. Don’t get me wrong, I love bread, probably more than I should. But no, stop, please.

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So that’s Instagram in a nutshell right now – bread and yoga and books and people telling each other to stay at home. Not the best days that platform has seen, I know. But there’s also this one small corner left of people sharing real moments from their real lives and that’s what I love. I love seeing those crappy pictures taken with their iPhones. I love seeing photographs of dogs and cats sprawled across feet on couches, dinners on plates and flower bouquets lighting up the rooms. Because that’s what life looks like right now. And it’s just a strong reminder that, at basis level, now that we’re all stuck at home, there is only so much that parts and differentiates us. Of course today would be different if I lived in a villa at the beach or had tons of money to spend on stuff online (like the Nintendo Switch with Animal Crossing on top), but at the end of the day, that’s all there is. They still watch the same shows, read the same books and only get to leave their houses for those small moments every day. We’re all the same. We’re literally all in this together (*instant HSM flashbacks*).

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And because I love those snapshots from current basic normal life so much, I thought it would be nice to share some moments from my life right now too. In short, most days have consisted of me sleeping in late – as always -, going for walks with my parents and Molly, cuddling with Peaches in bed, doing some uni work, watching TV or YouTube and then reading my book before bed. On a more interesting note, I’ve been cooking a lot for my family and myself – I even made my first pickles yesterday, with chard stems -, I have taken up drawing again and of course I’m always tending to the little jungle in my room. I recently bought two new plant friends, who seem to be super happy with their new home and are quite literally thriving. And another positive thing to come out of this shitty quarantine is my parents and me being forced to find new trails to walk on every day, which has led us to (re)discovering our home and the surrounding lands. We literally got lost in the woods yesterday. I didn’t even know that we had those woods. I do now.

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So, now you know what I’ve been doing. Time for you to actually see. I chose my favourite pics from the past month of my camera roll, all taken with my iPhone, and I hope you like them – for all see down below. As always, please don’t hesitate to get in touch if you want to talk or just to share your opinion. Also, I’d love to see what you’ve been doing this past month, so please feel free to share your favourite moments on here. And until then, I wish you all a great week and hope that you’re doing well. I’m sending you all the tightest of hugs and, of course, thanks for reading. x

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My Level Of Concern

Hola everyone.

And welcome back to my blog. How are you all doing so far? Are you getting through your quarantines okay? Here in Austria, we’re slowly reaching the end of ours, thank god. So far, it’s planned that most shops will reopen next Tuesday, but it all depends on how the numbers will look at that point. I’m hoping for the best, naturally. Maybe they’ll “give” us even more if the numbers are super low. Kinda insane though, when you think about it, isn’t it? We’re all stuck at home, waiting for men in a higher power to finally tell us that we can go out again. Very very freaky. But oh well. We’ll get through this together, right?

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And speaking about quarantines – guess who just saved 2020 for me? Made my day. Made my week. Mady my quarantine. That’s right. My boys. Ty and Josh did it again. Twenty One Pilots resurfaced to save the day. And they did it well because their new song with the title “Level Of Concern” brought smiles and tears not only to my face but those of countless others. The title was trending for hours on Twitter, the single swooped the charts within minutes and right now the uber-cute video has over 4 million clicks on YouTube. That’s what I call taking over the world in a heartbeat.

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It’s not just that the song is absolutely amazing and such a huge surprise as well, but also its backstory makes me incredibly emotional. Apparently, Ty’s mum told him to release a song for the fans in these tough times, to give us something to get our minds off all the negative stuff that’s happening right now and put a smile on our faces. And so Ty went and wrote a song about the time he last felt this lost and isolated. Once again, he dedicated it to his beautiful wife Jenna and turned it into a hopeful, shiny love song. And that’s how “Level Of Concern” came to be. How incredibly cute is that?

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On a personal note, the song really did save me yesterday and really managed to take my mind off things. In a nutshell, it feels like a well-needed hug from my favourite boys. I was actually in the middle of my online class when it got released, so, obviously, I had to leave the “room” for a few minutes. I was lucky, as the teacher had just given us a few minutes to discuss our current projects, so I could disappear without anyone really taking any notice. And then I heard the song and it just changed everything. For those three minutes and a few seconds, I was able to forget everything around me and just be with the guys, back in my comfortable clikkie cloud. The one that I had missed so badly. And after that, funnily enough, I watched the video while being back in “class”. Basically, I watched the video and had a bit of a fangirl freakout live on camera. Apparently, my teacher recorded the whole session for everyone to watch later on. So everyone will be able to watch me have a happy breakdown. Fun stuff. I know, it sounds very strange now, but once you watch the video I’m sure you’ll understand. It’s peak cuteness. Jenna and Ro are in it, glowing as bright as the stars, and Debby has the sweetest scene with Josh.

 

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Also, although the song and the video were released without the boys being cryptic in any way, it still manages to be cryptic, at least a tiny bit. The scenes for the video were all filmed in their homes, their own studios, and they all feature their families and loved ones. But what we also see are the past versions of Twenty One Pilots. Their past eras. Ty is literally wearing the same shirt he wore in, like, 2011. Back when it all started for them. So, while being so simple and sweet, the video and the song still stand for something more. They stand for everything. Another masterpiece, basically. Oh, and let’s not forget that it’s all for a good cause as well, as the parts of the proceeds go to the charity Crew Nation, which is supporting all the people that were supposed to go on tour with various artists now. I can just repeat myself over and over again – I love this band so freaking much.

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To be honest, ever since I heard the song for the first time, nothing much has been of any concern to me. Naturally, I’ve had the song on repeat all day and all night and I’m not even considering changing that. And another thing the song did is that it brought me hope. And an even bigger urge to see Ty and Josh in June. My mum and I still have our tickets for their show in Dublin on the 25th of June. One of 14 shows they’ll be doing this year. And their only headline show. I just have to go. I can’t have that be canceled. I just can’t. And if I can’t be in Dublin, I’ll go to one of those other 13 shows. I will see Twenty One Pilots this year. I swear to god and everything and everyone else. I will see them.

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In the end, I can just highly recommend you listen to this song. It will put a smile on your face, guaranteed. And hey, by listening to it you’ll actually be doing something good as well. I mean, how great is that? It doesn’t get better than this. And until you give it a listen, I’ll be here, blasting it on repeat and waiting to hear your thoughts and opinions and hoping you love it just as much as I do. I even did a photo shoot yesterday, after I had noticed that I was unintentionally dressed in the colours of the single cover – see pictures down below. That’s what I call fan love.

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Again, I hope you enjoy the song and please don’t hesitate to get in touch. And until then, I wish you all a lovely weekend and a happy Easter. Please continue to take care of yourself and others and spread positivity. We’ll get through this. I’m sending you all tight hugs and, as always, thanks for reading. x

‘Sadboy Guitar Bangerz with too many soloz’

Hola everyone.

And welcome back to my blog and another Friday – not really a New Music Friday, but something more exciting than that. Here in Austria, I can slowly start to see the finish line of our quarantine and maybe it’s because of that or maybe because I’m sitting outside, enjoying the glistening sunshine and some fantastic music playing the background, but I’m feeling a lot better than I was a few days ago. I’m already imagining how we’ll talk about this crap of a spring in a few years. The time we couldn’t go outside anymore and hugs were illegal. Crazy times.

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But speaking of fantastic music – today’s a very good day for music. Specifically for the phenomenal indie band Peach Pit, who just released their new album today – it’s a banger – and who I got to interview a few days ago. And I couldn’t be any more excited to share the finished article with you guys. Please enjoy. And please go and give the guys a listen. They’re honestly so good. And the album is literally the perfect addition to any playlist. And we’re all in need of some great music right now, aren’t we?

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‘Sadboy Guitar Bangerz with too many soloz’

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It’s safe to say that 2020 has already been one hell of a year, and while that’s not necessarily a positive sentiment for a lot of people, for the members of Vancouver-based band Peach Pit, it’s been an unforgettable year for all the right reasons, with their newest album “You and Your Friends” just having been released. Intense, fun and with the warm breeze of a day at the beach, the album makes a perfect addition to any quarantine playlist. And it’s true – Peach Pit is the type of band whose music is always, and without fail, good, with their second full-length effort being no exception. To celebrate their special release, I got to chat with lead vocalist Neil Smith about the early beginnings of his band, the importance of teeth and their plans for when we all finally get to leave our rooms again.

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Let’s start right at the beginning – how did this band start off?

Well, our guitarist Chris and I met in high school, but him and our bassist Peter actually go all the way back to kindergarten. The four of us didn’t really become friends though until we were in our early twenties. That’s when we all connected and actually became good pals.

Did you think you’d end up where you are now back then?

We were always hopeful, which is how you have to be when you start out trying to make music. But no, it’s hard to believe how far we’ve come since playing in Chris’ dad’s basement 5 years ago.

What do you enjoy most about being a band? What do you dislike most?

Getting to tour all over the world and have fans in every city wanting to see you play is very surreal. That’s probably my favourite. And my least favourite is being stuck in the van with Mikey when he starts to feel cooped up. He goes crazy sometimes and just starts playing his drum machine super loudly to annoy us. It sucks!

Looking back on your career so far – what is your favourite memory?

Probably playing our last big hometown show in Vancouver. It was on Halloween and at a big theatre that has always been on our bucket list to play. All of our family and friends were there and we dressed up in full KISS costumes. It was sick pretending to be Gene Simmons for a night.

How would you describe your band to someone who didn’t know you?

Sadboy Guitar Bangerz with too many soloz!

I read you like to describe your sound as “chewed bubblegum pop” – could you explain the meaning behind that?

We only said that because people always ask what kind of music we play, and because Indie music steals from rock and pop and more down tempo stuff it can be hard to pick which “genre” you belong to.

What was the process of producing and creating your new album like?

The writing portion was pretty challenging, we all spent a lot of time in our rehearsal space and I spent a ton of time at home alone trying to write songs last year. The recording of the record was the best though. We got to work with John Congelton and we hit it off immediately with him. He’s one of the funniest and most fun guys to have to hang around for weeks on end. I hope we can record another album with him in the future.

Do you follow a certain formula when you write your songs or is the process different every time?

Yes. Usually I come up with either the song title or the first line of the song and write it down in my notebook. Then I try and come up with a chord progression that I like and add a melody and lyrics to it. Once the song is done being written, then I bring it to band practice and the guys and I mess around with it until we’re happy with all the parts and the arrangement. The song generally changes a lot from when it’s just me at home to the full band playing it.

Why are teeth so central in your new album?

Because their highly underrated, how hard would eating be without them!

What is your favourite track of the album and why?

My favourite has changed a lot since we finished recording the album. But right now, it’s probably a two-way tie between Brian’s Movie and Your Teeth. With Brian’s Movie, I really like that Chris is playing a 12-string guitar with a slide (he’s never done that before) and Your Teeth I just really love the melody, it’s kind of creepy but also sad and pretty.

What has been your most enjoyable song to write so far and why? What’s your favourite song to play?

Shampoo bottles was written really fast, like in two days which is way shorter than normal. I love when a song just falls out of you super easy. And my favourite to play would be Brian’s Movie, I just can’t get enough of that 12 string.

How do you try to stand out of the crowd?

We just try to be ourselves as much as possible. I think people can sense when you’re being fake so you might as well avoid trying to be something that you are not. This would be my strongest piece of advice to any young bands starting out.

What are your plans for the future, after all of this is finally over?

Well once all this shit dies down we’ll be able to get our touring schedule back on track. We were so excited for this spring but unfortunately staying at home is the most important thing we can do right now. So, in the meantime we’ll just be on Instagram live as much as possible. Please tune in.

What does music mean to you?

It means everything to me. Besides my family and friends, it’s the most important thing. Not only is it our livelihood but it’s just our favourite way to spend our time. Being able to pick up a guitar and entertain myself while being stuck inside has been a huge blessing.

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Peach Pit’s latest album “You and Your Friends” is now available in stores and on all download and streaming platforms. 

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And there you go, guys. I hope you enjoyed the interview. Please do go and give Peach Pit and their new album a listen – it’s uber fantastic, it truly is. And just so much fun to listen to. And besides that, I hope you’re all doing good and not going too insane at home and wish you all a lovely weekend. And, as always, thanks for reading. x

What Now?

Hola everyone.

Well, where do I start? It’s been a tough few days and weeks and I’m probably not alone in asking myself when this hell of a time will finally end. I was actually planning on publishing a recent interview I did with the amazing LA indie band HUNNY back when I was still in London, but I thought an update would probably be a bit more beneficial. So here’s what’s been happening here in Austria and also in my own headspace.

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Let’s start with something positive first, as all I’ve been surrounded by in the past few weeks have been bad news and I can’t deal with them anymore. I’m officially 24 and 3 days old. Yeeeeeyyyyy me. That’s one thing this asshat of a virus couldn’t take away from me – my birthday. And despite all that’s been happening, it was actually a super nice day. Take that, Corona, you pain the ass. The whole day was dedicated to forgetting about the current events as much as possible and it really worked, which made me insanely happy. I spent a lovely day with my parents and even got to see my grandma (in a safe way, obvs) and just two days ago I had my Skype birthday party with my friends. Because that’s how you party in 2020 – via facetime. A few weeks ago I would’ve probably said that was quite lame, but it actually was really really nice to see all my friends and to have a chat together. Also, I got myself an amazing birthday present – an Olympus XA2 film camera, which I can’t wait to finally get my hands on.

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Besides that, I’ve been stuck on a shitty, emotional rollercoaster since I came home about two weeks ago (feels like I’ve been home five months, not two weeks). One day I’m feeling okay and pretty optimistic and then a few hours later I seem to have lost every sense of positivity. It’s a constant up and down. But through all of this, I’ve learned to accept my own feelings and to work with them. I feel like right now many people look down on people who are complaining about missing out on experiences, holiday trips, birthday parties, weddings, all that. Because it’s constantly about the greater good, about saving lives. And of course, that’s the top priority right now. But sometimes it’s also okay to feel depressed, to have negative thoughts, to be sad or simply to be egoistic. Because trust me when you’re stuck in the same house for over two weeks with nowhere else to go or nothing else to do, your world gets really small really quick.

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And yes, I’ve been feeling very anxious. I don’t know when or if I’ll ever be able to return to London and my old life. And I’ve told many people about my worries and have often heard that I need to accept the current situation and that there’s nothing I can do, but fuck that, honestly. Do you know what it feels like to live your literal dream life, to build a new life up somewhere else, a completely new place, and have it be this perfect and then have it ripped out of your hands in a matter of a few minutes? It’s shit, that’s what it is. And I know some of you might think I’m insane for saying stuff like this out loud because I should probably tell you to #stayathome and pray or tell you who I’m staying at home for or tell you how dramatic the situation is in Italy and that nobody should complain even once, but, again, fuck that. Quite a lot of us are losing quite a lot right now, by the simple act of staying at home for longer than any of us have ever had to in the past and it should be allowed to talk about it. People are losing to illnesses that have been here way longer than this virus has. People can’t watch their children being born. Happy couples had to cancel their weddings. People are losing jobs on a daily basis. My mum had to close her office and put her whole company on hold two weeks ago with no information about when she’ll be able to work again and little to no support from the government. My dad works at a bank and still has to go to work every day, risking his life and the lives of others day by day (although I’d do quite a lot to be able to go outside and see other people right now). And then there’s me with no idea when I’ll be able to return to London, my second home, again.

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So, every day has become a huge ass question mark, which is just another reason why I’ve started to live from one day to another. I’ve stopped making plans for anything, because I’d rather have no plans than having yet another event canceled that I was looking forward to (*cough* any concerts ever *cough*). And besides that, it has also kinda helped me to stay positive. Daily walks have become my highlight of the day. I’ve buried myself in a book I’ve been reading (The Nightingale; it’s fantastic, but definitely not for someone looking for a light, fun read) and I’ve actually resurrected my Nintendo DS and have been playing Harvest Moon in my urge of getting my mind off buying a Switch so I can play Animal Crossing, like 90 % percent of the internet right now (I’m so damn close to buying it though). And on a more artistic note, I’ve recently started drawing again, which has really helped me calm down when I’m feeling anxious. And cuddling with my loved ones, that’s a big one as well. Cuddle and hold your parents and anyone you’re stuck inside with right now. Talk to your friends. Go and press your cat or dog to your face. It really helps.

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In a nutshell, that’s what my life has been like in the past two weeks. It has been just as chaotic as this blog post right here. I go from straight-up positivity to the darkest of times in a matter of a few hours day by day, but I know I’m not alone in this and that kinda helps. I guess we’re all in this together. So let’s just try and be kind to each other. But as I’ve sworn myself, please promise me to never disregard your own feelings. It’s okay if you’re feeling down or feel like there’s nothing to get up for. Or if you’re feeling happy while people around you aren’t. Your feelings are important and so are you. Please know that. The only thing I want you to remember is that there’s always something or someone to get out of bed for and it might not seem like it right now, but a smile is always better than nothing. Go and spread positivity in any way possible. And if the news are getting too much for you, just turn them off. Do what makes you feel good.

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Please take care of yourself, guys. Again, we’re all in this together and we’ll get through this together. I’m sending you all tight hugs from my living room in Austria and hope you’re all doing good, as good as you can. If any of you feel like talking, I’m always here for you. And until then, thanks for listening to my rambling and, of course, thanks for reading. x

A walk through London

Hola everyone.

What a scary, uncertain place the world has become, huh? I can only imagine how some of you must be feeling right now, but I hope that you’re doing good, given the circumstances. I’m currently back home in Austria and waiting for this weird apocalyptic sci-fi movie that we’re currently stuck in to finally start rolling down its credits so I can leave the cinema.

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I’m going to be honest, before I got here, there was this point where I was debating whether I should stay in London or go home, but I decided that if shit was really going to go down, I’d rather be at home with my family. But I’m not going to lie, I really miss London and its normality of life. I mean, who knows what the situation is going to be like in a few days’ time, but for now I have to say I really enjoyed the stability this probably very mental and kinda dangerous dealing with this virus gave me. I’m just hoping everything will be back to normal again in a few weeks (hopefully even days), so I can go see my friends and celebrate my birthday. Maybe even go on that holiday to the south of France we booked before everything went downhill. And, naturally, so we can all continue with our usual lives and people can start feeling better again. I feel like we had to reach a point where we all had to fight for something together (besides the survival of our planet) and I think that time has come now.

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All I can say out of my current situation is that if you are planning on staying at home for a while, nothing is more important than your mental and physical health. I mean, that’s always the case, but especially now. I’m trying my best to keep away from any dramatic news to not make myself feel anxious and to just keep focusing on the bright side. I’ve been spending a lot of time with my parents and my pets, texting my friends, going for walks, but also taking some time for myself, because me-time is just as important as the time you spend with other people. So, look after yourself and your loved ones, do some exercise, cook something delicious and watch that movie you’ve been wanting to watch for weeks. Now’s the time. And please please please don’t give in to the panic. And – I feel a bit weird saying this, but I think it’s important – don’t go and buy more than you need. Toilet paper won’t keep you healthy, so just buy what you need. We’re in this together, so let’s make it the easiest it can be, yeah?

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In the light of current events, I’ve made it my mission to spread happiness and love and a bit of sun and that’s exactly what I want to do today. Before I flew home, I spent one of my last days in London with my friend Lauren. Surprisingly, it had been a beautiful, warm, spring-ish kind of day, so we decided to make the most of it and go for a walk. In the end, it turned out to be more than just a short walk and more like a stroll through a quarter of the city – over twelve kilometers in total – and I can’t even describe how glad I am that we did this. Walking along the canal, through Camden and Little Venice, and seeing all these new places while the sun kept lighting up our faces felt like a holiday trip. I absolutely loved it. And as it was such a nice day, I had decided to take my camera with me and the pictures I took are what I wanted to share with you today.

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Most of them depict the beautiful nature we came across during our walk, some buildings are in there as well and of course the overall theme is just the immense beauty of London. What a dream. Please enjoy.

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And yeah, that’s it. Please don’t forget to share your thoughts down below and if you feel like talking, I’m here. Before all of this started to go downhill, I was actually planning on taking a break from blogging during the time I’m home, but now that I will have a lot more free time, I’ll try my best to keep the blog updated. I know we’re all collectively struggling right now, so I’m sure you’ll understand. Also, I know this is a difficult time, but I’m convinced that we can fight this together. Again, please look after yourself and everybody around you and let’s just try to get through this as one. We can do it. Please stay safe everyone and I wish you all a lovely week. Thanks for reading. x

Meet Vincent

Hola everyone.

How are you all doing on this beautiful Monday? Another week, another new start, am I right? Actually, this is the last Monday I’ll be spending in London for over a month, as I’m flying home for my birthday and the Easter holidays on Saturday. And then, when I’m back, I’ll have about two months here and then summer will have come and my second year at BIMM will end. I’m sure the last year at uni will go by just as quickly as this one. And then it will be time for me to get a job and become a real adult. Ugh.

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But hey, let’s not think about that just now and worry about stuff that’s still in the future. Because, right now, I’m doing absolutely fantastic and I don’t think I could be doing any better. This is partly because of me living in London, basically the greatest city ever, and my amazing friends here and all the crazy, exciting stuff we do. And today, I’d like to show you some pictures of one of the events I went to with my very good friend Lauren a few days ago. It was beautiful. Please enjoy.

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As some of you might know, I’m a huge fan of art and painters, especially Monet and Van Gogh, and whenever there’s a chance for me to go to a museum or some cool art installation, you can bet that I’ll be there. So when I saw a few months ago that there would be a special Van Gogh exhibition coming to London, I immediately added it to my list of things I wanted to do in the city. And after a bit of a wait, it was finally time for us to the step into the magnificent world of Vincent Van Gogh.

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I’m not going to lie, it was pretty amazing and unlike anything I have ever seen. I don’t want to completely spoil it for you, as some of you might want to go and as I would totally recommend doing that too, so I’ll just say that the exhibition lets you get to know Van Gogh unlike any other museum or exhibition I’ve ever been to. It truly is absolutely magnificent. And if you go see it, don’t forget to take your camera with you, because there will be multiple occasions where you will want to take a picture, trust me. And speaking of that, here are some of my favourite pictures that I took that day. Some were taken on my camera, some with my phone. But all of them are fantastic and I’m so incredibly happy that we got to go to the exhibition. What a wonderful experience.

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And with that, we’ve already come to the end of today’s post. I hope you enjoyed reading about the exhibition and my pictures. If you’re interested in the installation or just want to find out more about it, here’s the link to the website. As always, I’d love to hear your opinions, so please don’t hesitate to get in touch. And until then I wish you all a great week and thanks for reading. x