The Way I Am

Wow. It's been too long. I have so many great songs and albums to review! I think about this blog 24/7 and I am THRILLLLED to finally have a chance to sit down and share it all with you.

The Way I Am by Ingrid Michaelson is a song you probably all have heard. I used to hear it play in the ice skating rink every time my friends and I went (which wasn't often enough). So when my mom said "I FOUND THE BEST SONG EVER!!" and played it for me I fell so in love with it.

This song is an absolutely wonderfully simple love song. It's not a song about how she'd die without the man she loves or how he's her world or she can't stop thinking about him. No, she just talks about how she'll take of him, because he takes her just the way she is despite what everyone else thinks.

The lyrics are so cute! And I just love the world the music puts you in. It's calm and flowy, and the way the verses flow wit her voice sounds really sincere. She puts a lot of tiny minute dynamics into the song and she puts a lot of controlled emotion into a short uncomplicated song.

I have to say, I also love that it's from a self released album of hers, and the reason she started making her own music was because she never got into any shows on Broadway or else where because she was never "the type". So she was like "Screw it, I'm doing my own thing!" ;)

The video says all! So enjoy, enjoy, for it's been too long :)

The Way I Am

(sorry, can't embed, click here)

The Way I Am- Ingrid Michaelson

If you were falling, then I would catch you.
You need a light, I'd find a match.

Cause I love the way you say good morning.
And you take me the way I am.

If you are chilly, here take my sweater.
Your head is aching, I'll make it better.

Cause I love the way you call me baby.
And you take me the way I am.

I'd buy you Rogaine when you start losing all your hair.
Sew on patches to all you tear.

Cause I love you more than I could ever promise.
And you take me the way I am.
You take me the way I am.
You take me the way I am.

Starlight

Recently I went to the American Idols Live! Tour concert in Washington, DC. I have a full review of that coming up, but during the concert I was introduced to some gorgeous songs, one of them being Starlight by Muse. When Adam Lambert sang Starlight, I was BLOWN AWAY. I was really scared to get the original because often when Adam covers songs, his version of it and his voice is just so superior to those of the original artists. I was (and am) happy to report that Muse absolutely NAILS it!

Starlight is a song about missing someone. Anyone. Anyone who cares about you and anyone who you care about in return. Lead singer for Muse, Matthew Bellamy, said that he first wrote the song on a ship in bad weather, but I think the ship in the song can have many different meanings.

A journey, literal or figurative. A journey that makes you sacrifice things and explore new things, and build and break your expectations. Find new revelations, despairs and celebrations.

But the song has fear, desperation. Fear that your loved one will disappear while you take your journey. Fear that he/she will become a memory, and that memory will fade away. Desperation to hold on to them. To chase them and love them no matter what, to never let them go.

It also has hope. Hope and love towards that person, something that person brings out inside of you, something you want to bring out in other. Something you want to share with and show the world, with your loved one by your side.

This song is about love, hope, togetherness, ambition and desperation. It's life.

The lyrics are so inspiring and the song is so well put together with Mr.Bellamy's vocals and the guitar, drums and piano used. I love the emotional strength portrayed through the piano and drums. It's powerful, but beautiful. Matthew Bellamy does an especially amazing job during the chorus (hold you in my arms...etc.). He has such emotion, but still maintains his voice and uses it so effectively when switching to the higher notes. It's altogether gorgeous.

I hope you are inspired <3

Starlight-*****

Starlight- Muse

Far away
This ship is taking me far away
Far away from the memories
Of the people who care if I live or die

The starlight
I will be chasing your starlight
Until the end of my life
I don't know if it's worth it anymore

Hold you in my arms
I just wanted to hold
You in my arms

My life
You electrify my life
Let's conspire to re-ignite
All the souls that would die just to feel alive

But I'll never let you go
If you promised not to fade away
Never fade away

Our hopes and expectations
Black holes and revelations
Our hopes and expectations
Black holes and revelations

Hold you in my arms
I just wanted to hold
You in my arms

Far away
This ship is taking me far away
Far away from the memories
Of the people who care if I live or die

And I'll never let you go
If you promise not to fade away
Never fade away

Our hopes and expectations
Black holes and revelations
Our hopes and expectations
Black holes and revelations

Hold you in my arms
I just wanted to hold
You in my arms
I just wanted to hold

***

And for the sake of loving him... Here's Adam performing Starlight in Newark (thank you TheAdamBombs!:

Happy Birthday to a Legend

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MICHAEL JACKSON <3

1958-2009

YOU WERE LOVED AND CELEBRATED, YOU ARE LOVED AND CELEBRATED, AND YOU WILL BE LOVED AND CELEBRATED THROUGH THE HEARTS OF MANY.

TO YOUR IMMORTALITY: MAY IT INSPIRE MORE GENERATIONS TO COME

Elizabeth & The Catapult- Taller Children

Elizabeth and the Catapult is a really amazing band. It is a trio of Elizabeth Ziman (vocals), Pete Lalish (guitar), and Dan Molad (drums). Ziman is a Young People's Chorus of New York City alumni and I discovered her when we (the chorus) were doing a concert at Carnegie Hall and she performed her single Devil's Calling. I absolutely fell in love with her (you know what I mean). So, of course, I ended up getting her three singles and devouring them. They didn't really have a good website set up and there was virtually no information on them anywhere so I didn't post about her band on this blog. One day I was looking in the music section in Border's and I saw her album! I was so excited! They also have a great website at www.elizabethandthecatapult.com where you can also find their Twitter, MySpace and Facebook pages.

Their debut album, Taller Children, was released this year and has a beautiful blend of jazz, pop, indie, and rock using lots of different instruments that most bands don't use or at least not in that style. There's a lot of simplicity in her lyrics, but there's also a lot of deep emotion to them and sometimes they're very metaphorical in their simplicity.... that make sense? Her songs suck you into another world. It feels like they're washing away all your stress and, as my friend said after she listened to them, "It's different. It's a nice break from all the crap in the world.". I completely agree. Her songs are full of wonder and hope and they put life in perspective, in a way. All her songs just make you feel good. Some make you want to skip in the rain or run as fast and as far as you can or swing under the sun or just sit down by a window and watch the world. I hope you enjoy :D

Taller Children: ****

Tracks:

[*=single]

1. *Momma's Boy- *****

2. Taller Children- ****

3. Rainiest Day of Summer- *****

4. Race You- *****

5. Apathy- ****

6. The Hang Up- ***1/2

7. Hit The Wall- *****

8. Right Next To You- **

9. Everybody Knows- ***1/2

10. Complimentary Me- ***1/2

11. *Golden Ink- *****

12. Just In Time- *****

Momma's Boy is one of my favorite songs on this album. It has a kind of retro feel to it and I like the keyboard and guitar, it's very cool. I like the words; they're not complicated but they send a very obvious message without being cheesy or mediocre.

The next song, after whom the album is named, is a really cool blend of jazz and pop with a few rock elements. I like the message: "In the end, we're all just taller children." And at first I thought it was going to be about how we never really grow up, but now I see it as "We're just taller children. We still need to relax and play. Stop acting so grown up!"

The Rainiest Day Of Summer is a beautiful calming song that makes you just want to sit by a window while it's raining or walk down the street in a downpour, spinning and splashing and skipping or simply sitting, "melancholy, melancholy...". It's a wonderful combination of strings, piano and drums. It has a good combination of styles.

Race You is so much fun! You just wanna get up and run! It sort of makes you forget about life. Or better yet, enjoy it! It's just so mundane about racing someone back home, your dinner's getting cold and your family's waiting to greet you. And you're sure you're going to win! It's just so enjoyable in it's simplicity.

Apathy is a gorgeous ballad. It's wonderfully written and though it doesn't vary much, it keeps you interested. It's very emotional about the fear of losing the chance for love and not being understood for it.

The Hang Up is really funny because it has happy music and it's sung pretty upbeat but it's about how she'd rather be doing ANYTHING than putting up with this guy lol. It's a fun little break up song XD

Hit The Wall is a great song. It's very interesting and I love the suspenseful feeling mixed with darker emotions like recklessness and determination. I love the style and the use of guitars, drums, strings and backing vocals. I also love the free style she does near the end of the song; very well put together.

I may have to go as far as to say that Right Next To You is my least favorite song of the bunch. It seems very cheesy and lounge-like. And the synthesizing in the middle is very weird... But the verses are nice. I just think the chorus gets very slow and monotonic. The backing vocals also just don't work.... By the end I just tend to be kind of bored.

Everybody Knows has a very intriguing beginning starting with just Elizabeth and drums, building up with percussion. The verses are very interesting with the jazzy, dark feeling. E&TC's use of strings is just brilliant. I don't like the chorus as much, it tends to be repetitive. It doesn't change. But I still think the lyrics are great <3

Another song with great lyrics is Complimentary Me. The chorus isn't my favorite, I especially like the beginning. The lyrics and what the song is written about is interesting, though.

Golden Ink is another beautifully written song that sort of puts you into a surreal world of golden skies and sliver breeze. It sweet. To me it's about writing an amazing fantasy and running out of thoughts and sort of getting stuck in this make-believe world you've created. It's nice.

One of the most beautiful and touching love songs of all time: Just In Time. I fall for very few love songs. Most of them are cheesy or boring or over processed or just plain annoying, but this song is so organic, so pure. The lyrics are absolutely raw and filled with emotion and just brilliant. It's like someone's heart described in music. It's. Just. Brilliant.

Bass B'Day

Timothy Lucas McCord was born in California and he is turning 30! He's the bassist for Evanescence. Happy B'day Tim!

More Adam

So I have been really busy and kind of neglecting this blog, so I missed out on a lot of things Adam Lambert has done. So I'm going to brush up on his American Idol performances.

If I Can't Have You (Top 7, song by Yvonne Elliman)

This is one of my favorite performances from Adam. He puts a lot of feeling into the words and the finesse he uses in his voice fits perfectly with the words. You can tell he's really into the song and he just makes you feel so deeply. Add that with his flawless technique, amazing voice and stunning stage presence (again, I apologize for the quality of the videos) and you have an absolute five star performance.

Feeling Good (Top 6, song by Sammy Davis, Jr., version by Muse)

Surprisingly enough, this performance landed Adam in the bottom two. I think it was because his use of the stairs gave him a very haughty self-indulgent air about him, but I think he was brilliant. It felt like a real show watching him swing his hips as he very sassily(???) walked down Ryan Seacrest's stair case at the beginning of his song. I love the lyrics and the song itself is great. He did Muse's version of it and I thought it was good, even if it wasn't his strongest performance (he didn't deserve to be in the bottom).

Whole Lotta Love (Top 5, song by Led Zeppelin)

YES! LED ZEPPELIN! This was SO perfect for him, and he totally nailed it! I was super excited about him doing Rock Week and he definitely pulled it off. He worked with Slash (from Guns N' Roses) this week and he took his advice to stay in his lower range, which was brilliant since he shows off his high range a lot. The pure rock sound and sexual feeling that the song has came out wonderfully in his voice and he was the rock star of the night. Yeah!

Slow Ride (Duet with Allison Iraheta, Top 5, song by Foghat)

The perfect pair! Allison and Adam have been my two favorites throughout the whole competition and I was SOOO excited to hear their duet. It was great! Adam held back a little as to not show off in front of Allison and he two of them had great chemistry on stage, they gave a great performance. Allison is amazing, too, and at 16 I think she has an amazingly advanced voice for her age (and in general).

One (Simon Cowell's choice, Top 4, song by U2)

I do have to say that Adam has an amazingly talent for suspension in a song and building up to the climax. He keeps the song moving even if it has a tendency to get boring (as this one does). I thought he sang it well and kept us pulled in, and I loved how he arranged it. Flawless as Adam always is :).

Cryin' (Top 3, song by Aerosmith)

"...someone I can't resist..." didn't that make you feel like you were really struggling to resist something that you just couldn't? Great. Flawless. Amazing.

Mad World (Favorite performance, Top 2, song by Tears For Fears)

Adam got to do his favorite performance of the season and he picked Mad World. Last time he sang in a plain jacket with a chair and blue light. Very "subtle" (as subtle as Adam can be), quiet and showed a different side of Mr. Lambert. This time, though, I loved how he made it very theater/Broadway

with the AWESOME trench coat and the even sexier fog. The song showed one side of him while the stage showed another. Beautiful ;).

A Change Is Gonna Come (producer Simon Fuller's choice, Top 2, song by Sam Cooke)

Simon Fuller is a brilliant man. I have to say, this is DEFINITELY one of Adam's top 3 performances. The slow quiet with the strong blasting sides of his voice mixed with such powerful lyrics, amazing music, an A suit and the most eye-catching stage presence EVER this song was absolutely stunning. I mean, your whole heart and soul is pulled into it, especially when he holds that one note and then slides into the next and you can feel yourself holding your breath. This is absolutely one of my favorites.

Adam had actually performed this song at The Zodiac Show. You can hear how much better his technique is now, but I like the Zodiac one because you can really see him put a lot of feeling into the song and really be himself without the pressure of AI and the media. You can see the video (and it's a real video) at the bottom of this post.

No Boundaries (mandatory, Top 2, co-written by Kara DioGuordi and premiered on the show)

This was my least favorite performance, more so because I didn't particularly like the song. It was a little too cheesy, predictable, and stereo-typically pop for me. It did not suit Adam's voice. He pulled it off, though :).

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A Change Is Gonna Come (performing at The Zodiac Show)

Check out his bio! Go to www.zodiacshow.com, click "Bios", click "Leads" and then click his pic at the bottom of the screen.

A Beatles B'Day

James Paul McCartney was the bassist for The Beatles and vocalist, too. He was born today in 1942 in Liverpool, England and is turning 67. Happy Birthday Paul!!!