Happy New Year!!!!

So, New Year, new start and all that, who's got New Years resolutions? And who is actually going to stick to them?

I am actually not setting myself one this year, because I feel last year was such a successful year for me in so many ways. This time last year, I would never think in a million years that I would be where I am now, only a year on.
So this year, my only resolution is to carry on the way I have been.
I find with resolutions, because you put so much expectation around it, it actually becomes harder to stick to and as soon as January is over, it goes way out the window. If there is something you really want to stick to, whether it be a diet, a promise to try harder to be productive or even just treat yourself a littler nicer, don't call it a resolution, call it a life change or something you think you will stick to and make it fun! Don't make it the be all and end all, if you slip up, that's fine, you don't even need to tell anyone, just pick up where you left off. After all, we are human, and we are allowed to not do everything the way we planned, otherwise we would be boring and just robots! We are allowed to have fun ;)

Back to New Years Eve though, what did you all do? I would love to know, might give me some ideas for things to do in future years!
I went to Troxy in London, Dollop (click for link to their Facebook) were holding an event there. MK, Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs, Wilfred Giroux and others were playing. Pretty safe to say it was an amazing way to start the year. Great friends, old and new, ridiculous music and talks of an even better year than the last!
Dollop puts on a few events around the country through out the year, check them out. Definitely worth it! It was set to be the best NYE night in London, so it had a fair amount of hype around it, but my God, did it deliver! The venue itself was crazy, Troxy is actually a theatre, but it lends itself well to these type of events, having a lower section which gets pretty packed and sweaty and a higher section that is enormous and you can chill out a bit back there. It even has a balcony section, as most theatres do, but you were allowed to sit up there and watch it all going off on the lower level, it was a bit mesmerising!

I can't apologise enough for the state of me in some of these photos, but welcome to our messy little world on NYE 2014:

Sorry for the terrible iPhone front camera quality photos!

Yeah. I think I rocked those glasses...

Half of the team.

Before I go, I promise you the last post is coming soon about my Albums of last year, I have had a bit of a crazy week. I am sorry!!

Much Love & New Year good wishes,

Chloë XO

The Predictable Christmas Post

First things first, I hope you all had a MAGICAL Christmas!
I certainly did, I really thought this year was going to be the first year I was't going to see my family, due to many life obstacles, but we made it work. Which made it even better!

Christmas has a different meaning to everyone, throughout your life that meaning sometimes changes as your priorities change and you, in some cases, grow up. Christmas for me has always been about spending quality time with my family, the one day a year that nothing matters other than the people you are with and enjoying yourself on that day.
Every family has their own routine on Christmas day, how well that is kept to is hit and miss, but this year ours was slightly different to usual, we have never spent Christmas day at a friends house until this year, but it was one of the best Christmases yet!

My magical day in photos:

Wrapping Presents with 'A Christmas Carol' on TV. Of course.

My Mum always decorated my room for when I come home. Cutie.

The Before...

...And the after! Santa Stockings for 3, Bright and early Christmas Morning!

No Christmas is complete without this image <3

Parent selfie!

My one and only

Much Love,

Chloë XO

Nothing better than a cosy winter night in

As it is Christmas Eve (!!!) It's pretty safe to say, winter has been well and truly settled in for a while now, the need for big furry coats and woolly hats has been flirting with my annoyingly empty bank account. 

I am personally, definitely not a winter person, I am a summer bunny. I put it down to that Maltese skin my mother dearest, so kindly, passed on to me. However, as much as I love a scorching Mediterranean beach day, there is something lovely and comforting about a cozy winter night in with the family or friends in front of the fire, with a lovely big, healthy mug of hot cacao and my puppy.

This is my standard pre sleep routine in the winter (Thanks for the book Lucia!)

My Pops and I take great pride in our Christmas trees!

Obviously my boy needs his very own Christmas jumper

Christmas is about appreciating new friends, as well as the old.

Although I am a summer girl, strangely, my fondest memories of being a little-un are the cosy Christmassy, winter nights playing board games with my family. The smell and sound of the fireplace crackling away, with our gorgeous old dog curled up in front of it.

I have a perfect routine when I am back home, I come in from my long day (of being highly productive, of course), then I whack on a nice chilled album or playlist, light a few candles, run the bath with some winter spice bubble bath (most likely The Magic Wand, Reusable bubble bar from lush) and stay there all nice and warm until mum serves up one of her famous healthy comfort dinners. Then comes the board games or a movie and the fire. 

Welcome to the Santa's grotto that I call home

There are a few things that absolutely make winter for me, hopefully in my little list you will find a new thing to add to yours. Share yours with me as well, I'm always looking to spend money I shouldn't be spending!! 

1. Big cozy coats for outdoor adventures, onesies for snuggling inside.

2. An enormous collection of winter accessories I.e. Earmuffs, beanies and gloves

3. Big mugs full of hot cacao

4. Christmas shopping in Covent Garden (it's a lot to handle, but worth it if you're in the right mood)

5. Huge thick knits

6. Christmas films, Elf never stops being funny and the grinch always melts my heart 

7. The Christmas UK Music Chart

8. Snuggling up in the warmth with my boy, after spending the day in the freezing cold (Either my boyfriend, or my dog come under that category! Will, don't kill me for that one..)

9. Winter Edition Yankee Candles
10. Every single second of Christmas day, the food, the family, the good energy and the love you can feel running through everything. 
Even though I prefer summer, Christmas has always been my favourite day of the year, it is just so magical and filled with happiness, family and LOTS of food. What more could you want?!

I am obssesed with pandas.

Wouldn't you just love this little Burberry car to deliver all your shopping home for you! Go see it in Covent Garden!

Anyway, it's Christmas Eve!!! Spend lots of time with family and friends, and hopefully you're all better than me and have done all your Christmas shopping! I will be madly rushing around in a few of hours as the shops are trying to close...
I wish you a magical, happy and fun Christmas!

Much Love, 

Chloë 

XO

We Scream Records. Definitely worth a listen!

It's always good to have something new enter the scene, especially if it has a lot of hype, excitement and therefore potential. Everything starts from the bottom and works it's way to the top (queue 'Drake -Started from the Bottom').

I don't know about you, but I absolutely love stumbling across a new artist, track or album and having something fresh to follow and fill that gap that is forever a little bit open.

What's better than an artist, track or album? A whole new label. All of it in one, and continuously releasing absolute bangers. By that incredibly descriptive choice of words, you will probably guess, it is an electronic label, predominantly House.

Let me introduce you to, We Scream Records.

Owned by Louis Robinson and Jono Green, right out of London, they bring you fresh Deep House and Tech House records from a variety of producers and artists from the UK and South Africa. 

They are currently in the middle of a Christmas and New Year campaign, so it would be a great time to check out what they have to offer on their Soundcloud, as the downloads are currently free. How lovely and generous, eh? (Click the word 'Soundcloud' for the link). 

I would definitely suggest to give 'Heart Strings' by Louis Robinson (Jono Green remix) and 'You got to Lose' a listen. Louis has just posted up a naughty little mix for you all as well, because he's nice like that! 

Got your attention? Check out their website and youtube page (again, click on the words for the links), Louis is also a resident DJ on London's Dance Power Station, 'Electric'! Where We Scream Records will be doing weekly takeovers every Sunday 6-7pm up until the New Year, so tune in here!

I can't stress enough how hard it is for musicians to get started in the industry, every share, follower, listen is like another Christmas present!

I actually met Louis at the London club, XOYO, about a month or so ago and started chatting. You meet the best, most interesting people when you least expect it. Especially in this industry, networking and socialising is key. Although, I can't exactly say I was in the best state, he is a genuinely really nice guy and very talented, so obviously, when he told me about his new label and showed me what he does, I had to share it with all of you too! You're welcome!

As I was writing this post, Louis has just told me, he has posted his brand new mix on youtube. Don't you feel special, getting this literally as it is happening?! This is my little Christmas Present to you all, enjoy!

Much Love,

Chloë

XO

Number 4. Black Messiah.

Last week something amazing happened.

Every muso was made very happy, and every one at my uni did a little happy dance. For one reason and one reason only.

The king returned. 

D'Angelo dropped his new album, 'Black Messiah' on 16 December and I have honesty never seen my facebook feed completely full of people from uni going absolutely nuts over an album. I've had to make the decision to drop another album from my top 5 to make room for this one. Which may come back to bite me, but...D'Angelo!!

The album speaks for itself, get onto spotify, YouTube or pop into HMV if you're old school, PURCHASE, not download and whack it on. It's full of the soulful, groove heavy, funk you would expect from D'Angelo. He hasn't tried to go down a new route to fit in, he has shown the world that great music is always great music, it doesn't need to be messed with.
I am personally, so happy he has done this his own way and not tried to bring in new elements of the current trends. A D'Angelo track is timeless, classy and not one thing gets overlooked.
14 years, it has taken him to release a new album since 'Voodoo', he hasn't been completely quiet though, working on features with other artists, a sneaky leaked track and an arrest (naughty). To be honest, it didn't look like it was all going too well for him. In 2012 however, he bounced back with a European tour, which far from surprisingly was pretty much sold out within a day of each ticket release. 
Which led nicely into 12 December 2014, the day 'Black Messiah' was released. This album is not an ordinary album, it is a protest album, giving a voice and attention to the activists fighting against the 'minority deaths at the hands of cops' (See this extremely informative blog post by Yohana Desta, for more information about how deep the album truly is)

I've got to say though, does this guy not age?! Come on now, there's already a Will Smith and a Keanu Reeves in the world. What are these people eating?! I want some as it clearly makes you immortal!! I mean, we all remember THE D'Angelo video, right? (If not then, here you go. You're welcome.) It has been 8 years since that was released, and he honestly doesn't look all that different. That video has a lot to be held accountable for, it is a huge reason as to why D'Angelo dropped off everyone's radar, he didn't want to be seen as a sex symbol, which says a lot about his character and his true love for what he does. Well D, you have turned yourself into a potential legend, job well done I'd say!

And on that note, have a wonderful Sunday night!

Much Love,

Chloë X

Number 3 of my Top 5 Albums of 2014!

Right, so number 3!

I have to admit, I am kind of cheating with this one. I am not going to apologise though, and here is why...
My number three, was technically brought out in 2013, but a Live version of the album was released this year. I personally think this album is a huge step forward for Electronic Dance Music (EDM). There has always been the clubbing/rave side of EDM and the chilled out side, but this album meets somewhere in the middle, with just the right amount of ambient and epic, and who doesn't love a little bit of epic, honestly. As the live album shows, it also lends itself quite nicely to live instruments, which Electronic artists seem to be doing a lot recently; potentially something to do with the popular 'you're not a musician if you don't play a guitar' argument at the moment. My opinion? We are in the 21st century, does that mean pilots aren't pilots because they use cruise control?

Okay I have rambled a bit, so the album is......... The North Borders by Bonobo!

For any who don't know, I am a HUGE EDM lover. At the moment, the main focus for my own music, is doing vocals for EDM producers, hopefully being part of a duo. However, I also love playing with live musicians.
So, it is pretty safe to say that if Spotify counted how many times an album had been played, this one would be a ridiculously high number!


Bonobo is a British DJ/Producer from Brighton. His first release, Terrapin, was in 2000, so he has been around for a while; he hasn't just landed. His music is quite bass heavy, being EDM, but slightly more appealing to people who wouldn't necessarily usually listen to this kind of music, as it doesn't have as much of a prominent hard hitting constant bass drum on every beat.
The North Borders - Live Album also comes with a DVD of his tour; you can watch a little preview here. My jammy little bugger of a boyfriend actually worked on the bars at one of Bonobo’s nights in London a couple of weeks back; he isn't really a fan of EDM, but even he searched the album the second he got home. If you knew my boyfriend, you'd know how much that says about this album, he really isn't into this music at all... he likes to call it 'bang bang thump dance music', yeah, I know...

So, go listen!
Watch the DVD as well, Bonobo actually plays bass guitar live, which I think is awesome! Especially considering critics like to say producer/DJs can't actually play music... (I am doing my dissertation on this, touchy subject!!)
I suggest very good speakers or headphones!

Much Love,

Chloë

XO