These issues have now been sorted and corrected so I will be working on blogs more often. Reviews will all be up shortly.

Once again sorry for the delay

Maddie xx

It can only be one band that gets adults in their thirties/forties moshing at the front of a small venue.

That band would be the UK SUBS.

The Beacon Court played home to the London based four piece for the night. Only the singer remains in the group joined by three other musicians, that didn’t matter as you weren’t there for the people, you were there for the music. Every one of the audience knew all the words and if you forget about today’s fashion than you could have believed you where back in the good old seventies seeing the band for the first time.

The music was loud, the venue crowded and drinks were flowing. What more could you want out of a gig. OK so their not the Sex Pistols but they have talent and have a great stage presence. Even the people that didn’t know the words were enjoying themselves, the image they had on stage worked. People were jumping into the crowd from the small stage and the lead singer was encouraging them to go mental.

Even after they finished their set everyone in the room joined together to yell ‘UK SUBS, UK SUBS’. Not one single person wanted them to leave the stage. I’m sure if there was no such thing as drinking laws we could have been sweating in that room all night and all day.

I’d see them whilst you can. Proof that music is still music and not just all pretty boys and girls.

 <UK SUBS from the 70s (lead singer second from right)

Videos and images do not belong to me, so I take no credit what so ever for them…

The Famous Class was a perfect choice to warm up the crowd with catchy tunes that have you singing along and beats that you just have to jump to. They most certainly got the crowd going. Beach balls and large inflated bananas (yes, you read that right) were flying around in the air as the fans punched their fists in time to the music.

After such a punky band it was a complete shock when MC Frontalot then came onto the stage. Completely different sound, well it’s ‘geeky’ rap. Lyrics made you laugh but at the same time you could relate to them easily. Sample Lyric- “I hate your blog. It’s incredibly terrible and bad. I hate your blog. You own a dog, and you feed it. You post about it. I get to read it. Plus: five paragraphs on the socks you bought.”( I hate your blog- Secrets From The Future, 2007) However for the last three songs of the set, the crowd got to see the Wheatus as they joined the rapper on stage.

At last the long wait to see Wheatus was over! They perform the songs we all know and love. It was when Teenage Dirtbag – hit single of 2000- was played, that Brendan Brown actually forgot to start playing again once the crowd sang every word perfectly, as if in praise. With no set list they were the perfect crowd pleaser, how he heard what the fans were yelling at him is beyond me. It was your choice to what you wanted to hear and they went along with it. Some fans were in tears at seeing them on stage once more in the UK and others just plan speechless.

With new songs under way that sound -dare I say it- better than the older stuff, Wheatus is one band that don’t plan on leaving our hearts any time soon.

‘There’s no label, no management…nobody making choices for us.’

The Famous Class talk Twitter, Touring, Reading, Blink 182 and what the future holds.

As the weather drops around London; Ben (Guitar), Joe (Drums) and Stoo (Guitar/Vocals) settle themselves down in to the cold, hard metal chairs at Victoria train station’s Wetherspoons to talk about life in a fast growing DIY band. Once the beers and lagers had been bought and introductions had been made it was time to crack on and find out what makes this band tick. Justin (Bass/Vocals) was stuck at work so couldn’t turn up but still spoke to me after a show they did at the o2 in Islington.

Being an unsigned band – to keep control of what they do – fans are really important and that’s something that doesn’t skip these guys minds. “Fans aren’t fans they’re friends” explains Joe and what with the internet and sites like ‘Twitter’ it is getting easier to stay in contact with the people who support you. Ben chips in saying “As long as we can keep up with people we will” they all control different parts of the band process like internet sites and merchandise like the t-shirts, “Talking to them [followers] helps us research what’s good or not.” It makes in much easier to love a band if you know that they are going to listen to your advice. “The comments we get [on twitter] from friends saying that they like us gives us a rush and that feeling is amazing.” Even the t-shirts are designed by the band themselves so you can wear a piece that they have thought hard and long over, making you feel closer to the guys. Everything they do shows the passion they have for the band and the people that keep them going.

Proving this passion the first way they got people to hear their music was to give out free demo’s outside other bands gigs, and now they have released their single ‘Emily’ for free on the bands website. Even the EP is at a low price it’s “a nice introduction and lets people know what we are about” says Joe. Besides letting people hear them risk free they are one of the bands trying to crack down on illegal downloading.  Everything this band does seems to be done with the fans in mind; after all they are fans of their own music.

Regarding the sound of the EP it sounds very American pop-punk “we try and keep the accents off to make it sound British” says Stoo “making the music people want to hear and we want to play.” All coming from slightly different music backgrounds like nu-metal, rock ‘n’ roll and electric it is clear that they all have one band in common that they are influenced by and like so many other bands it’s Blink 182. The interview side tracks when Blink get mentioned and the guys start talking about Reading and seeing them live. Pulling it back to the topic at hand; each and every member of The Famous Class found that being in a band was the only natural road for their lives to go down, they can’t think of anything better that they would like to be doing. Unlike other bands however they all have separate jobs so that they can pay to get to gigs and give us the entertainment you would expect from a band that’s in it because they love what they do and not for the money. Every aspect of group has pure enthusiasm written all over it.

Being influenced by such bands like Blink and New Found Glory; although from listening to their five track EP you wouldn’t notice, the band strays away from the typical Emo music of the today and they have fun with the records. “The music is fun and not  too serious” explains Ben “there’s a likeability factor there that people pick up on from not being a complete rip off” with Stoo adding that they “like to take piss out of self.” Making the music that they would want to listen to plays a big part in the overall sound. If they don’t want to hear it then why should we? This shows through on the stage when you can see that they enjoy every second of what they do.

The music live is a totally different story. As soon as that first chord is struck you are taken into the world that they have created for you. The songs will have you jumping within seconds and no matter how hard you try to keep a straight face you won’t be able to stop yourself from singing back the words to them. Even though they are a new band they still manage to cram so many songs into a half hour set. Covering other bands songs like ‘Never gonna give you up’ by Rick Astley, the band make them their own. Playing small venues is great for a band like this as it means that they are one with the audience and the energy they put in you find yourself putting in.

For a band called ‘The Famous Class’ fame is still a shock, people asking them for autographs and “opening up magazines and seeing myself” is still a way off experience even though it is happening now and happening fast. The advice they would give others in bands is “spend shit loads of time with them” and that’s true of these guys. You can certainly see the brotherly love on and off the stage even though they came together as pairs.

Whilst trying to remember whose round it was at the bar, the band explains how they come to be in the first place. Ben and Joe started out in a band together that they describe as “atmospheric rock and totally serious” They made the decision to start a band that had the “fun, upbeat pop-punk sound” Stoo joined them when “searching Gumtree and realised I lived down the same street as Ben”. They auditioned for a while to find a Bass player and that final important member but the auditions didn’t go as well as they wanted, the final piece to the puzzle wasn’t found until Stoo bought his mate Justin along. He was a natural choice as like the others he has a music background; he and Stoo where also in a band together before joining The Famous Class.

“Impressed with Justin as he had innovative, creativity and was really laid back like the rest of us and had really good ideas” says Ben; the rest as the old saying goes is history. Everything was on the up when Justin joined them “They didn’t realise I could sing until I did at a practise” so it was set, The Famous Class are ready to take over the world and make us enjoy life again.

The future sets to be bigger and better “musically we are right on track” Ben explains, “moving into bigger areas.” There’s going to be a lot of hard work for the band “work fucking hard, hard works pays off.” Ben tells me. The main objective seems to be to get more shows played so that more people can see them live. Not a single negative comment has been made and with a tour set for August and a single due out in the late summer this is one class you will not want to miss.

They blew the place away with their catchy riffs and sing along lyrics, everyone in the room was moving and head bobbing. The songs like the first single ‘Emily’  (now on scuzz tv) just make you smile however hard to try not to.

Even though the lyrics couldn’t be heard -but that’s probably because I was far too close to the speaker to hear much- it didn’t matter. If you’ve listened to the EP which you can get from ITunes and the band’s website (thefamousclass.com) you knew as soon as the first chord was struck which song was about to be played.

The covers where amazing, like seeing the real thing but on a much better scale. These four boys better be ready because if they keep it they are going to take over the world. The amount of energy that they put into every song made them amazing to watch on stage and is certainly something I’ll be doing again and I suggest you follow or your going to miss out.

This is one class you will NOT want to miss!

 I was just searching google.co.uk for research due to a uni project; just as I was about to give up I clicked on a side link that led me straight to finding out that Pauls Boutique have teamed up with Mattel to produce a range of limited edition bags for Barbie…Every girls dream right, Barbie is certainly growing up. Louboutin gave her new shoes and now Pauls Boutique are giving us bags.

 The label were approached last year by Mattel to design a collection to celebrate Barbie’s 50^th (a very big celebration indeed) and now here it is. You can get the bags from http://pauls-boutique.com/ and prices range from £30 to £80.

 My personal favourite is the Gracie oversized bag. If you’re a serious Barbie collector you really don’t want to miss out. Selfidges are offering an exclusive preview on the 18th July, I’m going to be there are you?

I couldn’t believe it when I heard that one of my favorite actresses was bringing out her own clothing line. Emma Watson- the 19 year old female lead of Harry Potter films- has decided to create a fair-trade line with People Tree saying that ‘it has been the most incredible gap year project’.

The star who is also the face of Burberry and Chanel describes her clothes as ‘all very strawberries and cream and tennis.’ The line which is launched this month includes knitwear, cotton t-shirts, jersey dresses, woven skirts, trousers and skirts as well as accessories. Unfortunately the line is aimed at teenagers and under so us adults will just have to make do or try and squeeze into them.

The collection is made in Bangladesh, India and Nepal. You can check out the line by subscribing to www.peopletreeyouth.co.uk.

This and filming the last two Harry Potter films back to back- earning her £10m each Emma won’t have to worry about how to pay those student loans like the rest of us. That’s if she used the loan service which I doubt she did.

She is the Idol every parent wants her little girl to have, she’s polite, doesn’t fall out of clubs drunk and as well as modelling contracts, being a teen star she still goes to university. Go Emma!

Always being surrounded by music your whole life you become attached to it. One song can make you feel an emotion quicker than anything else. It can make you weep from a broken heart or dance with happiness, an endless reminder of good and bad times. There are so many reasons to why people listen to music and there is so much different music out there. A mixture of everything is the best; you can have your motivation playlist to your angry get it all out playlist or an angry calm down list. It’s endless.

The best music is when there’s a meaning behind it. To me the lyrics make a song, the melody just follows. The lyrics are what you become attached to; they are what make you feel how you feel. One line can stick with you forever and always have meaning. You could hear it now and then in ten years time hear it again and remember how it made you feel, even remember what you wore when you first heard it. It’s like a relationship- the lyrics are the emotional trust and love and the melody the sex and lust. You need both parts to make it work; only both parts together will affect you. I still can’t listen to Snow Patrol’s ‘Chasing Cars’ because it brings back to many memories of a past relationship.

Song writing is a release; it’s an escape route and if your music can help others who feel how you feel then that has to be the best feeling in the world. One song that can make me break down in tears and take me higher than the sun at the same time is a song that my dad wrote about me. Every time I hear it I remember the first time he played it to me and how it made me feel. Now every time I listen to it I remember and smile with memories.

The reason I listen to music is because it takes me away from the world; takes me away from reality. I can lock myself away for hours and just listen, then come back out feeling more positive and knowing what to do. It helps me concentrate and even revise. Sitting in the exam hall all I had to do was think of what song I was listening to and I’ll figure out the answer. Music gives me hope in the world, knowledge that it can’t all be bad. One song can have many meanings, everyone interprets it differently, what makes me smile could make you sad.

I hope that future music carries on with having a meaning. It shouldn’t be about how people look; after all when you listen to it you can’t see the people behind it. Future bands should continue to make music not because they are paid to but because they want to, because they want to bring joy to peoples hearts, bring happiness into ones life. I hope to see more guitar bands coming around and I say bring back ‘Top of the Pops’, a reason to listen to the chart. The chart now-a-days no longer has any meaning without that show.

A band being on their own label is great; it means that they can make the music that they want to make with out having to be commercial. More bands should sign to smaller labels that way they are helping each other out. Now with programmes like the ‘X- factor’ we are seeing people joining the music industry because of how they look and a voting system based on how popular they can be. Just take ‘Jedward’ very popular with the public and I’m not going to lie, very entertaining to watch, but really where’s the talent? Where’s the people who get signed because they have talent, write their own songs, play their own music, and play Live!?

The future of music is going to keep going this way; it has never been easier to make that singing dream come true- even if you can’t actually sing. All I say is if you really want to make it and survive- start a band with your friends in your bedroom and do it the old fashioned way. Hand out demos, and keep handing them out, at least then if you get signed your know it’s because your good. It will be such a shame to see singers and bands in the charts all from a television programme.

I don’t feel that CDs are going to be around for much longer either, more and more people are downloading which is a shame as you can’t get any of the artwork or read where it was all produced with a download, but it doe’s mean that you can get a song faster and old music has a chance of reaching number one. Proving that a good song really does live forever.

I’ll end with the words from Sapphire when she was speaking to Russell Hammond in Almost Famous ‘They don’t even know what it is to be a fan. Y’know? To truly love some silly little piece of music, or some band, so much that it hurts.’ Music is always going to be there no matter how much it changes.

The limited edition collection is due to hit stores and online- for both companies- in October. There’s going to be five different styles in multiple colours and retail at a price between £495 and £695.

 So worth not paying bills for!

The collection is going to be based on the UGG construction with the design details coming from Jimmy Choo.

Finally for winter 2010 our feet can be warm and oh so stylish.

Jimmy Choo’s president, Tamara Mellon, stated that ‘Other than Jimmy Choo, UGG Australia is the only other footwear I have in my wardrobe. We are delighted to have created a special capsule that captures the best of both brands- the legendary comfort of UGG with the spirit of Jimmy Choo.’

Connie X. Rishwain, President of UGG Australia, added ‘We are thrilled to be able to offer the Jimmy Choo and UGG customers a unique collection of boots that we believe our customers will covet.’

(All quotes taken from other blogs after doing a google search)

 First let’s get the ego part out my system; the best thing about the 90s was me being born in the middle of 1990. I know being a 90s child I should like it, but I don’t. I look back on photos and wonder what on earth I was thinking.

The best fashion moments from this decade are hard to pick and I only have to choose three. It was all about minimising and looking back. There where so many different trends, it really was the start of being an individual. I managed to pick three though and those are: Grunge, Brit Pop and Punk. It’s my blog therefore I can choose what to write on, you may think about hip-hop, the start of sports wear as fashion and all those other things, but I don’t. I shudder at the memory of jelly shoes and a union jack dress and I still feel track suits should be for the gym and that showing off your stomach for your holidays.

Grunge was really a less political version of punk. Charity shop buys was the way forward. Like punk it was a lifestyle not just a fashion and I think that is what draws me to all three. You’re not just making fashion choices, your making a lifestyle statement. The effortless, comfortable feel makes this one of the best things about the 90s. Mixing a floral dress with a men’s baggy checked flannel shirt, add Converse on the bottom and you where dressed. Music came along and joined with bands like Nirvana and Pearl Jam. Who needed the hype of the Take That and dare I say it, the Spice Girls?

Brit-pop or a cheaper Mod you make the decision. Like grunge this had a music scene. Bands like Oasis, Blur and Pulp bought Brit-pop to the mainstream. If you look at photos of Mod’s then look at a photo of Brit-pop don’t you see something similar? Smart straight leg jeans, short jackets, baby t’s and a pair of Chelsea boots. Seriously if you add the scooter and a parker you’d get a Mod. Looking back and changing it to fit the current time really get’s proven here.

Skip to the late 90s and we start to see punk emerging. Admittedly not 70s punk, there was nothing political about it. It was just youths dying and spiking their hair, adorning themselves with body piercings, band t-shirts and black jeans. Both sexes would wear black make-up, bringing back the ‘goth’ look.  Compare this to today’s fashion and I think we call it emo.

(I’d add pictures but I don’t know how, I’m not that good yet lol)