Imagine Dragons - Smoke + Mirrors Tour 2015 (Mannheim)

The confetti was so cool, I had to take some with me.

It finally was concert day again! Imagine Dragons time.

Monday has been a bad day and I wasn't even excited about the gig, but the moment the band entered the stage I forgot about everything and just enjoyed the music.

And this is exactly why I love going to concerts so much. It's already great to turn up your music in your headphones or on your stereo and shut off the world for a while. But seeing the band perform, have fun on stage and all the people around you enjoying the music as much as you do is just brilliant.

Dream a Little Dream by Giovanna Fletcher

Sarah's doing just fine... Sure, she's been single for the last two years, and has to spend an uncomfortable amount of time around her ex-boyfriend, his perfect new girlfriend and all their mutual friends. And yes, her job as a PA to one of the most disgusting men in London is mind-numbingly tedious and her career is a constant disappointment to her mother. But it's really okay. She's happy(ish).

So it's not surprising that when Sarah starts dreaming about a handsome stranger, she begins to look forward to falling asleep every night. Reality isn't nearly as exciting.

Or is it?

I've got to stop writing down the blurb right there, if you haven't got the book yet, try to not read the blurb to the end. I regretted it, because it takes a bit of the surprise out of the book. I hate spoilers in the summary... But I didn't hate the book at all.

The 5 earworms of the last weeks

Whilst I've been on holiday there were five songs that I just couldn't get out of my mind. I'm still working on some reviews and am a bit short on time at the moment, so I thought I might as well present you a little part of my weird mind. Especially because most of the songs are surely worth a listen. At least said weird mind thinks that.

There's also some good reasons why it's been exactly these five songs:

Panorama City by Antoine Wilson

Today it's all about one of the books I've read whilst on holiday in Italy for the last 10 days.

This book is one of the most wonderful and inspiring books I've read in quite a while. Seriously. Actually I can't even remember when I was amazed by a book so much.

I received the book by the publisher (Suhrkamp/Insel) in exchange for an honest review and I couldn't have wished for a better one. So thank you for this opportunity!

Panorama City (German title: Ein Mann von Welt) is the story of Oppen Porter - told by himself. Literally. It's a transcript of tapes he's recorded for his son, because he's going to die. You can find more information on the book and the author here or on Goodreads.

Oppen Porter is a simple man who has gone to the big city to become a man of the world. He has to change is lifestyle to live there, he gets a job and he meets new people. He learns a lot. Not just about himself, also about life. And I reckon that's why he wants to pass everything on to his son, so that he doesn't have to struggle to find that knowledge as well. 

September Roundup

Time flies! September is over and summer as well. Bring on those sunny autumn days with it's light breezes and colourful leaves. Welcome October!

But first let's relive my September in things I've heard, watched or read. It's less films, series and books this month, because I had to write a seminar paper for uni and was quite busydue to that and now I'm on holiday. Nevertheless I discovered a lot of new music which was entertaining and making work easier.

And it has been a month of firsts. I received my first reading copy from a publishing company, which is my current read, which you'll hear about in October. And you might have read my review of the Brass Phantoms single, which was a first as well as I never got asked by a band to review their music before.

BADLANDS - Halsey

Halsey might be the newcomer of 2015. I downloaded her album a few weeks ago and I'm in love.

Halsey is a 20-year-old, American singer songwriter and BADLANDS is her brilliant debut album, that came out this August. She made her way into the music business by uploading covers on YouTube, which were that good that they got signed to a record label.

After touring the US  in 2014/2015 with lots of different artists, including The Kooks and Imagine Dragons, it was about time for her record to hit the stores and streaming services.

The first song of BADLANDS - Castle - could as well be a Lorde song soundwise, and I think that's one of the reason I instantly adored Halsey's sound. It gets different throughout the record, more individual, simple but effective. I love that. Roman Holiday sounds a little like it could be one of the newest Taylor Swift songs, which isn't a bad thing either. There could be a lot of hits beneath the songs of this album, nearly every one of them has got something special.

Kaleidoscope // Summer Song - Brass Phantoms

Last week I got my first ever artist request for a review of their music. I was so excited when I read Ryan's email. Fun fact: I nearly deleted it before reading though, because I thought it was Spam, but then I realised it was actually written to me.

Ryan from Brass Phantoms asked me to listen to their new single and give them an opinion of what I think about it. So here's a little something about them and their new songs.

Brass Phantoms (Facebook // Twitter // Bandcamp) are an Irish indie rock band consisting of Ryan, James, Adam and Greg. They released they debut EP in 2014 and on 20th September this year they've now released their new double sided single with the songs Kaleidoscope and Summer Song and this is what they're like:

Therapy by Sebastian Fitzek

This is the first time I'm reviewing book by a German author for you. But don't be afraid it's available in English as well!

No witnesses.
Twelve-year-old Josy has an inexplicable illness. She vanishes without a trace from her doctor's office during treatment. Four years later, Josy's father, psychiatrist Viktor Larenz, has withdrawn himself to an isolated North Sea island in order to deal with the tragedy.
No body.
Then he's paid a surprise visit by a beautiful stranger. Anna Glass is a novelist who suffers from an unusual form of schizophrenia: all the characters she creates for her books become real to her. In her last novel she has written about a young girl with an unknown illness who has disappeared without a trace.
Where is his daughter?
Can Anna's delusions describe Josy's last days? Reluctantly, Viktor agrees to take on her therapy in a final attempt to uncover the truth behind his daughter's disappearance. But very soon these sessions take a dramatic turn as the past is dragged back into the light - with terrifying consequences.

Kodaline - SWR3 New Pop Festival 2015

On Monday I already told you about the SWR3 New Pop Festival this year and the show of Ella Henderson. Today it's time for Kodaline, my - sorry guys - second favourite band.

For the discovery of this band I've got to thank Grey's Anatomy, Shazam and Google. Seriously. In 2012 All I Want by Kodaline featured in an episode of Grey's Anatomy (one after that horrible plane crash - spoiler alert, hehe). I loved that song instantly and thanks to Shazam I found out which one it is. And apparently I wasn't the only one who loved it: Google used the song in their Zeitgeist 2012: Year In Review video and I reckon that was a huge boost for the guys' career.

Ella Henderson - SWR3 New Pop Festival 2015

It's been a weekend full of music and therefore this week will be a concert posts week special kind of thing.

I've been to the SWR3 New Pop Festival in Baden-Baden, which was brilliant this year. When I found out about who would be there this year, I knew I had to go.

Ella Henderson and Kodaline were some of the first artists to be announced and they're both (well all five as Kodaline is a band) artists I've admired for years now, thinking about it both since 2012. So having both of them in one place would have been enough. And when the line up was completed it sounded even more brilliant with James Bay and Years&Years being added to the list.

I didn't get tickets to all the shows, but have seen a lot of artists play on the free open air stage and I've also been to two of the "real" concerts: Kodaline and Ella Henderson, who would have guessed? And today I want to tell you about Ella's.

Letters to Juliet

I'm going to Italy in a few weeks and what's a better way to get into the mood for it than watching a film set there? Right. Nothing.

That and because a friend and I were searching for a cute film to watch is why I've been watching it again recently. I've seen it before and apparently I remembered it as cute and Italian...

But first , here's what it's all about: letters to Juliet tells a story about finding love and that it's never too late. It was inspired by the non-fiction book Letters to Juliet by Lise and Ceil Friedman, which is about people writing to Shakespeare's Juliet.

When the New Yorker journalist Sophie (Amanda Seyfried) visits Verona she discovers this place where lots of women put their letters to Juliet. When she finds an old letter which has been hidden for quite a while and answers to it, she meets Claire who decides to go on a journey to find Lorenzo, the man she was writing about in her letter all these years ago. Sophie accompanies her on the trip and the outcome is a beautiful story taking the viewer to all these stunning places around Tuskany, Italy.

The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins

"Rachel catches the same commuter train every morning. She knows it will wait at the same signal each time, overlooking a row of back gardens. She’s even started to feel like she knows the people who live in one of the houses. ‘Jess and Jason’, she calls them. Their life – as she sees it – is perfect. If only Rachel could be that happy.
And then she sees something shocking. It’s only a minute until the train moves on, but it’s enough.
Now everything’s changed. Now Rachel has a chance to become a part of the lives she’s only watched from afar.
Now they’ll see; she’s much more than just the girl on the train…"

This book was recommended to me a lot. Friends, all kinds of people on Twitter, Amazon, Audible, Facebook adverts and then Goodreads. I had to get the book and read it, hadn't I? And it's pretty obvious why it's been recommended everywhere.

Feline - Ella Eyre

Nearly a week ago this beauty of an album called Feline came out. I anticipated this day for a long time - I actually preordered my physical copy in November last year, when there wasn't even a name for the record.

You might have heard of a track called Waiting All Night by Rudimental. When I heard that I fell in love with her voice. And when I downloaded her debut EP Deeper in 2013 I was even more stunned. And then I forgot a bit about her.

Until that utterly brilliant performance with Rudimental and my favourite band Bastille at the BRIT Awards 2014. I remember that this was the point where I realised that she's the Ella on a song named No Angels on Bastille's second mixtape Other People's Heartache, Pt. 2 which I apparently listened to a lot (as I said: huuuuge Bastille fan...).

August Roundup

It's the last day of August and it's time for the first of the new monthly roundups. I thought these posts might be a nice way to show you what I've been reading, listening and watching during the past four weeks.

I (sadly) can't write proper post about everything, I'd need a time machine for that, but I'd like to keep you up to date and give you a little bit of inspiration if you need some. When there's already a review up on the blog I've linked it of course.

I hope you like the idea as well! So here we go:

The Invisible Man by H.G. Wells

"With his face swaddled in bandages, his eyes hidden behind dark glasses and his hands covered even indoors, Griffin, the new guest at The Coach and Horses, is at first assumed to be a shy accident-victim. But the true reason for his disguise is far more chilling: he has developed a process that has made him invisible. Driven to murder, the horror of his fate will destroy his mind..."

That's what it says on the back of the penguin edition and surely a good short introduction to the book.

The story itself is quite good and I'm sure that the simple thought of an invisible man running around town threatening people was very scary indeed in 1897. I reckon nowadays it has lost a bit of it's frightfullness somehow, but it's still alright.

Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt

I was alone at home for a few days and in my loneliness I started to watch Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt whilst having dinner, because I needed something funny and entertaining whilst eating. I was searching for a series with short episodes and as I've got a NETFLIX subscription I looked on there for something to watch. I stumbled upon the Netflix sitcom "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt" that was created by comedian Tina Fey.

First of all, I've got to say I'm not the biggest sitcom friend. I never really watched How I Met Your Mother or Two and a Half Men. I loved Friends though and watched every episode at least twice and I'm even more fond of The Big Bang Theory of which I even know some parts by heart and don't think there'll be anything better any time soon. Nevertheless, I decided to give this one a go (especially as there were no new The Big Bang Theory episodes left to watch) and it was a good choice to be fair.

The initial situation of the series reminded me of "Blast from the Past", the film where a man grew up in a bunker and then goes out into the world after 35 years.

Minions

Who does't know them? Who doesn't think they're cute? What am I talking about? The Minions of course!

I've been to the cinema last Saturday with two friends to finally watch the Minion film. I was looking forward to see it since May, because when I was in London back then there were things with Minions on it all over the city. Then, when it came out, I had no one to go to the cinema with and let's be honest, who likes going to the cinema on their own? Therfore I had to wait till last weekend until I've finally found two victims. And I loved it, I hope they did as well.

If I had to rate the film as an adult film, I'd give it two to three hearts and all of them just for cuteness. The film is lacking content, the whole story could be put into a twenty minute short. And the minions talking like babies could get quite annoying sometimes. But thankfully it's a kids movie and as such it's getting five full hearts from me.

A Song For Me - The story of the "Julia from Germany" theme tune

The blog has had a little makeover and I feel like it's the right time to write a special post about something that happened two weeks ago and was somehow a little journey through German music in a special way. So here we go, I hope enjoy this a bit more personal and quite different post.

It was so hard. Not as in really difficult but as in I couldn't make up my mind. When I first heard I should pick a song I thought "Great!". Two minutes later I thought it's impossible.

Firstly I think I've got to explain, what this is about as most of you won't know. So here's a bit about a small part of my life, which is a bit weird, but definitely fun.

Billy and Me by Giovanna Fletcher

"Sophie May has a secret. One that she's successfully kept for years. It's meant that she's had to give up her dreams of going to university and travelling the world to stay in her little village, living with her mum and working in the local tea shop.

But then she meets the gorgeous Billy - an actor with ambitions to make it to the top. And when they fall in love, Sophie is whisked away from the comfort of her life into Billy's glamorous - but ruthless - world.

Their relationship throws Sophie right into the spotlight after years of shying away from attention. Can she handle the constant scrutiny that comes with being with Billy? And most of all, is she ready for her secret heartbreak to be discovered and shared with the nation?"

This book is a modern day fairytale. You've got that very normal girl who has a very normal job and lives in a quiet small town. Then this famous, attractive film star, who's every girls dream comes along and falls in love with her. Sounds a bit like Cinderella without the evil stepmother.

Already when I've read the blurb I knew this book would be very predictable, but I wanted an easy read and I hoped for it to be beautiful and entertaining.

The Top 3 albums released in July 2015

It's the first weekend of August, there's hopefully some more beautiful summer days ahead of us and therefore it seems to be the right time for a musical July roundup.

So here's my Top 3 albums that have been released this July. You can listen to them on Spotify if you click the links on the titles. Here we go:

No. 3 - How Does It Feel by MS MR

I kind of had forgotten about these two until I was researching July album releases. I listened to their first album "Secondhand Rapture" a few times when it came out back in the days, but it wasn't one of my favourites. And then I listened to the new one "How Does It Feel" yesterday and had it on repeat ever since, therefore it had to make the list.

I seem to love relaxing music this summer. It's a good soundtrack for chilling in the sun with a fruity cocktail or a drive through the countryside in a convertible.

It's full of glamorous Disco songs. The beats by Max Hershenow and the vocals by Lizzy Plapinger complement each other beautifully. The lyrics are meaningful, ask a lot of questions about life. There's a lot of thought made into catchy music, that's why it's my number 3.