What do YOU listen to?

ramtco.com

As for many student dorms or accommodation, we strive to be as comfortable as possible when it comes down to revision and generally living. Of course, living away from home does have its toll and can send the best of us into the spiralling pool of mess that are rooms somehow accumulate. I had a look at my room today, and I said to myself “what has happened”? As much as I don’t like to admit…my room was an absolute tip, and I know that many students find themselves in the same predicament as me.

What can we do? Sometimes, you can’t help but fling that tee to the corner or even that lone sock that will be forever lost in the jungle we call a bedroom. We get stressed; we are in a situation where we must look after ourselves as well as make sure we stay on top of our work. Time after time, something has to give way to something else, and in this case it’s the bedroom. I confess to be a mess during this period of exams, and sure some people may just say “well, clean it up”, but sometimes you get so comfortable in your mess that you start to forget that odd sock on your desk.

I found that having a messy room is the physical representation of the mind; a messing room equals a messy mind…and no one wants a messy mind at this time. Pieces of paper on the floor that could help with revision or exam prep may be lost under the mountain of jumpers, underwear and hats. This has to change. Now, when it comes down to dealing with this I turn to music. Music is the thing that makes laborious work move quicker, and is the catalyst to a tidy room.

The pace and energy in a song inspires a sense of energised work. If you are a gym goer, you probably already have a playlist for those moments on the treadmill. If you revise a lot in your room, you may decide to choose chilled or maybe even classical music. Or perhaps you’re that person that goes back to a cultural influence; bhangra, reggae or African? It all comes down to preference for an effective clean. If you’re one of the people, like me, who are currently living in a glorified cave, then get that playlist going. However, the question remains…

What do you listen to? Click here and decide on your favourite playlist.

From your hygiene-loving buddy,

Myles

Classical Music is your FRIEND

matthewstarner.com

We have all pretty much immersed ourselves in the art of Twerking, Dougie-ing and Cutting the occasional shape. With the recent rise and experimentation of Hip Hop and Pop, we have really lost our remembrance for the classics. Remember when you were young and you may have listened to some old skool tunes like Janet Jackson and Whitney in their hay day or even the infamous Spice Girls and Madonna’s Like a Virgin. For me, I’m speaking from a 90’s baby perspective, so there is only so much a can talk about when it comes to music that I’ve experienced. However, recently I came across something very interesting.

Classical music; the music of Intelligence, of Wealth and high status. For so long now we have associated these connotations with such a musically enriched genre, and we hardly even bat an eye at it let alone allow our ears to really absorb it. However, is this wise? From March onwards, we can all expect as university students to be under immense pressure from the looming 80% examination which starts to count towards your degree after second year. As well as this, some of us have to also lend our concentration to coursework due in less than a week and it may be all getting to us…just a smidge. So, what am I exactly trying to get at?

It has been scientifically proven that the genre of classical music can actually help with working at such a stressful time; the organic instrumental sounds of the piano, harp and violin lend itself to your benefit. Looking back at my previous post about Language and Music, the fact that music can activate most parts of your brain allows you to remember things that you wouldn’t usually remember. So why not put this to work?

Radio stations like Classical FM or others that play classical music can easily be put on in the background whilst you knock out that next essay or revision session. The soothing tones can relax you and allow you to absorb more of the information. 

An article in The Metro looks at the findings of clinical psychologist Dr. Emma Grey who suggested that maths “students who listened to classical music (with 60-70 beats per minute) while studying scored on average 12 per cent more in their Maths exams”. This is due to the fact that “the melody and tone range in classical music” allows students to maintain a longer studying/revision session and allows them to retain more information. It’s pretty evident that classical music is helpful when it comes to this period, however students of the 90’s who love their Hip Hop, Rock or Pop won’t find themselves prowling the YouTube’s search bar for Beethoven’s Fur Elise now, will they?

vimeo.com

This is where the fun part comes in. A friend of mine showed me a video that was hilarious, but quite interesting at the end. South Korean dance group ‘Waveya’ teamed up with the Belgium B-Classic Music Festival to create a project to promote classical music. What they created was not just a music video, but a statement. The video shows the all-female dance group dancing in cheerleader outfits and short shorts in a style that could be seen as commercial/jazz. The interesting beats that they hit to Antonín Leopold Dvorák’s ‘Symphony No. 9’ are clean, and they really do experiment with bringing the 1893 song to a 21^st century. The dynamic and cinematic locations they use keep you interested in the video, as well as the women dancing to it. As we work our way to the end of the video, a line appears stating that “You have just listened to 3 minutes of classical music” – pretty powerful if you ask me.

The video is definitely worth 3 minutes of your time, click here to watch it.

I want to leave this blog post on a note/question: why is it that when we watch a video like this, we can sit through minutes of listening to classical music, yet we won’t use it to benefit us when studying? Food for thought mis amigos.

From your classical music-loving friend,

Myles

Justin Timberlake - Let the Groove Get In

I’m not sure if I’ve come across one person that doesn’t like Justin Timberlake. Being the triple threat superstar that he is, it’s a given that his songs either hit an emotional heart string or hidden dance move in everyone.

From www.highsnobiety.com

Once again, one of my friends was lucky enough to see him in concert recently and of course put a video on the ol’ Facebook of the performance. Even though I wasn't able to go to the actual 20/20 Experience Tour, I did listen to many of the songs in the album; one that got me grooving was his track Let The Groove Get In. Now, this particular song definitely gets me up on my feet. For some reason, it reminds me of the music in Brazil; the start of the song has a very South American vibe and continues as a song that sounds like you would hear it at a Brazilian festival. The songs spurs your inner dancer and you find yourself moving without realising.

From blogs.theprovince.com

The harmonies and falsettos in this entire song always seems to justify that Mr. Timberlake definitely has the right to be held in such esteem as a professional and a very talented artist. Towards the end of the song, its style changes and it becomes more of a soulful sound, one that I was very drawn to as it didn’t sound as if it were part of the song. This part of the song attracted me the most and pretty much spurred me on to find out if there were any routines or choreography done to this song…and there were!

From Youtube.com

Anthony Lee and the dance group Culture Shock Los Angeles on YouTube really made me excited about the possibility with a dance to this song. The amazing transitions and canons in this routine are so visually stimulating that you can’t help but accidently miss something. Therefore, this routine is one that you have to watch more than once.

Sometimes, quantity overthrows quality but that is not the case with this choreography; it seems as though the more people in this choreography the better. The moment when the two lines move in a circular motion around the middle line is probably one of my favourite; they seem to continue the routine whilst running to their next position and staying in time. I appreciate the precision in the routine, even with the mass of dancers. I think it’s something that really showcases the talent of Culture Shock Los Angeles as a whole. The whole routine shows off the groove of the song, mixing accuracy with pure fun, and presents a dynamic and visually exciting routine. Anthony Lee’s YouTube channel is definitely one to watch out for and learn from because it’s filled with amazing choreography. 

Here’s the video, make sure you watch it!

 From your dance driven friend,

Myles

Jhené Aiko - The Worst

A friend of mine recently went to the Drake concert in London’s O2 Arena where she got to see the man himself, plus his supporting acts The Weeknd and Jhené Aiko. I personally thought that this mix of artists was such a brilliant match, because they are all so different in their own way. But what caught me the most was the amazing voice that Jhené Aiko had. I never really got the chance to listen to any of her songs; I did see the odd YouTube video with her in it here and there, but I never really sat down and gave her a chance. So, I sat down…and gave her a chance!

From Youtube.com

I went in with absolutely no expectations, and she completely blew my mind. Completely at the mercy of YouTube’s drop-down suggestions list, I typed in her name and the first song to come up was The Worst. Now, from what I assume after doing a bit of research into this, this song is a particular favourite for most people…and I understand why. The beat is absolutely sick; the piano mixed with synth-y tones creates this completely chilled zone. With this, her ethereal voice, and her choice of emphasis on words, produces this beautiful track; both complementing each other. The lyrics, captivating every sinew of your body, transport you into this story of love.

“I don’t need you, I don’t need you, I don’t need you, I don’t need you, but I want you” – talk about a lyric! I think this one in particular sticks in people’s heads just because it almost sounds like it’s going off-beat, but how she ends it sound so experimental. Then she raps! I mean this lady is seriously talented! I could talk about this song all day long, however that’s not the main focus of this post. I wanted to look at the result of it, i.e. in the form of choreography.

After typing this song on the ol’ YouTube, I wondered whether people had choreographed routines to it…and they had! Dabbling in a bit of dance myself, I definitely appreciated the fact that people choreographed to this song, purely because its beats and lyrical nature could be quite daunting to create a routine to. I know that I would definitely be a bit worried if I don’t do the song justice, but I think I will have to do it (so many ideas brewing right now).

From Youtube.com

Anyway, this post is specifically inspired and dedicated to the amazing BiancaJean3 (her YouTube username) and her routine to this amazing song. First thing about this dance is…WOW! Honestly, I was extremely inspired by it. She has thought about every sound in her piece, even to the sounds of Aiko breathing. What I particularly thought was nice was the subtle difference between the two backing dancers and the front woman (who I’m guessing is Bianca); there are slight changes in the routine when they break off from the main stream of things and do something different.

By the way, I’m not claiming to be some sort of expert; I just really love dancing, so if I sound pretentious…I’m definitely not trying to be. Just a supporter of the Arts over ‘hurrrrrr. Back to the dance; I thought the transitioning was silky smooth, from the 3-point to the diagonal line, and the mixture of masculine and feminine movements, it’s routines like this that inspire me to better myself as a dancer (an amateur one at that).

Now, please take this time to watch the video and see EXACTLY what I mean. And also, subscribe to BiancaJean3’s channel on YouTube, there’s some gems in there that you’ve got to see!

That's me! Until next time folks,

Myles

INTRODUCING: Myles!

Greetings to all of those who are reading this! So, I’m Myles, nice to meet you all. If you haven’t read the other posts done by the other writers on this blog…MAKE SURE YOU DO SO AFTER THIS, they’ve got a lot to say too.

Okay, so here I am! I write mainly about Music and Dance, which you shall all hopefully see soon, but I will also creep up on the odd Lifestyle or Fashion article somewhere or another. But yes, Music and Dance are two of my greatest passions. Honestly, if you gave me some headphones, any form of MP3 player, and a full-sized wall mirror…I would be the HAPPIEST man ever. I have come across a lot of Music articles, but not that many Dance ones, so I’m really interested in how people will take an article on the latest dance video or craze that I may write about. I’ll leave all of you to judge that.

I really do hope that the stuff I write about interests you. No one wants to come across something that is so mind-numbingly boring that you won’t be able to move on from…because it was SO boring! So if you are interested in Music, hopefully I’m your man. I like pretty much everything, from Pop and Rock, to R&B and Jazz, so hopefully there is something there that might tickle your fancy. Having been brought up in a mainly Motown and Soul musical environment, a lot of my tastes are quite different to that of a typical 20 year-old (bearing in mind that this sentence will be time-specific lol). However, I think because of this I am definitely open to listening to new things, that’s the best way to develop a real range of music tastes. Similarly, if you’re into a dance or two, or three, or even four…I am definitely your man. I’ve been dancing for quite some time now, mainly Hip Hop, and I’ve been able to work with so many talented people. So I will definitely be “putting in my two pence” (a little British slang there) about dances I’ve seen, dancers I find talented and inspiring, and my opinion about dance as a whole.

I don’t know about you, but I’m reallyexcited! These two things are things that I couldn’t see my future without. By 80 years of age, you’ll still catch me on the dance floor “dougie-ing” the night away with the best of them. Hopefully by then, I’ll still be writing too.

There are three of us that run this blog, Mimi, Becca and me #TheDreamTeam. So make sure you check out there introductions to you lovely people.

Let’s get this going! Grab a cuppa’ tea, a chair, maybe a biscuit, and enjoy!

From your musically inclined chum,

Myles