Tag Archives: Music

5 Best Boss Babes of 2018 (Britt’s Picks).

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We hear the words boss babe all of the time and I love taking the chance to recognize some of the bossiest babes! This year, I’ve really gotten into a lot of reading, listening to, and just encountering boss babes that I’m in awe of. Here are my top picks of 2018.

MUSIC – Kacey Musgraves, Golden Hour
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 Wow, wow, wow. This album is stunning from beginning to end. She does such an amazing job of stripping songs down to the most beautiful basics and singing the most relatable lyrics. The entire album appeared on my 2018 most played playlist on Spotify and there’s a reason for that. You can listen from start to finish and still want more. All hail queen Kacey!

PODCAST – Off the Vine with Kaitlyn Bristowe
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I’m proud to say I’m a Vino. Surprisingly, I’m not talking about wine. Although Kaitlin loves her wine and it makes it’s appearances on the pod, she’s just as real as they come. She does a little bit of Bachelor/Bachelorette recapping but mainly talks about life and how she’s working to build her own businesses. I find even listening to the podcasts where I don’t know the guests to be really entertaining.

PODCAST – Oprah’s Super Soul Sunday
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Oprah is as real as they come and she asks the best questions. This one can be a tear jerker sometimes. She cuts to the core of real topics. She brings to light so many thought provoking topics and there isn’t anything off the table. Some of my favorite episodes were with other boss babes like Julia Roberts (who talks about social media trolls and the affect they can have) and Michelle Obama (who talks about her upcoming book and IVF).

READING – Power Up by Magdalena YesilPower-Up-BookThis book was so refreshing when it comes to talking about owning your career and how to get past the chaos. Magdalena came and gave a talk at my office and I found her interesting but hadn’t read the book yet. After reading the book, I would have been so star struck to be in the same room as her. She’s so smart, focused, and doesn’t deal with any BS. I couldn’t recommend this book more!

CONNECTIONS – My Boss Babe Tribe
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I know this is cheesy but this past year I’ve been so in awe by so many of my friends and family members. Chelsea has been an amazing life coach to with so many different aspects of life, my sister in law started her own successful business, a handful of my friends spent hours with me helping me figure out my next career goals since they’ve achieved many career highs, and another handful have been helping me plan a wedding for next year showing me how much these women do on a daily basis to up level their careers, their lives, and overall achieve goals. Mad props to all my peeps, I’m continuously impressed and don’t know what I’d do without you! Cheers to 2019, with this tribe I’m ready for anything.

Goodbye to an Icon.

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By now you have most certainly heard the news that the music world has suffered a great loss. David Bowie was a movement; a man unafraid to be himself and reject the norm. Artists like him are a rarity and I am afraid that we may never experience an icon like him ever again. He had the ability to evolve and reach multiple generations, he always remained fresh and original.

I wasn’t raised on Bowie’s music, although I had heard Changes, Heroes, Fame, Suffragette City and all of the hits when I was younger. I was taken by the alternative music scene in the early/mid 90’s, that was (and honestly still is) my jam. The video above was my first taste of really falling love with a Bowie song- it’s one of my favorite covers ever, performed by Nirvana in 1993.

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In 1997 Bowie performed with Billy Corgan (and countless others) to celebrate his 50th birthday. I think this was the moment that I understood how cool he was- this man in the high collared coat performing alongside my idol. To me, at this time, he was clearly an influence to the people who influenced me and that made him special in my eyes.

 

labyrinthbowie1999. New Years Eve- the night the world was supposed to end when the year turned to 2000. A few of my friends and I decided to stay at home and watch Labyrinth featuring a 1980’s David Bowie. The clock was nearing 11P so we decided to pause the movie and walk downtown to our city’s New Years event and potentially catch a glimpse of Huey Lewis performing. He was playing in a large tent to a crowd of people who purchased 190 dollar tickets; that certainly wasn’t us because we were 16 years old and couldn’t wrap our heads around spending that kind of money on anything. Anyway, we caught a couple of glimpses of the band and noticed the clock was nearing midnight. At that time there was so much absurdity around what would happen at twelve (would computers spontaneously combust or worse, grow legs and take over the town?!) that we decided to head back to the house, you know, just in case. We huddled on the couch under a blanket, fired up the movie, and waited for the world to stop. But it didn’t and we celebrated with the Goblin King because that was the kind of 16 year olds we were- entranced by a natural performer on our tiny TV screen.

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I’m not sure how to end this random note on a man who took chances and changed lives. I guess no one ever really dies, as long as the memories (and the music) live on.

 

 

Festival Vibes.

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Over the weekend, we went to the annual BFD festival at Shoreline in Mountain View, CA.  Having worked for the station that hosts the event, we always appreciate the hard work put into it and it’s nice to see all of our old colleagues.  It can be tough figuring out what to wear because it’s usually warm during the day but cools down at night.

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My go to is a combo of shorts, tank, jacket, sandals and a blanket to be able to chill out in between sets or on the lawn.

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I’m a huge fan of the Bohemiam style and aztec prints.

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I love rocking a hat too for sun protection during the day and warmth at night.  This one is a good one because it’s small enough that it wouldn’t block anyone’s view at night.

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I also love to have a back pack.  In mine, includes sunscreen, ear plugs, leggings, and my wallet/phone.

What’s your go to festival outfit?

Glitterbug Gold.

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{{ Cheerleader }}
It’s no secret that I’m a huge Wombats fan.  It all started way back when they first released their first songs and I was living in London.  I would put their tunes on with my head phones and wander in new directions.  I feel like I grew with them along the way and always feel grateful for their contribution to my adventuring self.  Not to mention, their sound is pure perfection.  Every time they come to SF, I make sure to snag some tickets to their show before they sell out because the show never disappoints.  This time around they sold out the iconic Fillmore venue for the first time and brought two other kick ass bands with them, Cheerleader and Life in Film.  I have to be honest, I’d never heard of the openers but love hearing new music.  Both bands were great and made a great combo of music for the night.

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{{ Cheerleader – my favorite song of theirs is The Sunshine of Your Youth but all songs were easy to listen to. }}

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Next up was Life in Film, a British band with a beautiful and fun upbeat sound.  They sound a little bit like Young the Giant with the deeper voice and bouncing beats.  I really like the song “Alleyway” but found their entire set to be enjoyable.

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{{ Life in Film }}

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{{ Life in Film }}

  Both openers were great bands that I now have on my playlists and would love to see again.

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Taking photos of bands at indoor venues is actually extremely hard.  The light is dark and the bands usually move around a lot making it hard to capture the right moments.

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{{ The Wombats }}

Then came the Wombats.  Le sigh.  They have just released their new album Glitterbug and this is the first tour where they are playing the majority of their set with these new tunes.  They did a sample show a while back where they tested a few songs at the Rickshaw before the songs were released and it just made me so excited for this tour.  Glitterbug is pure gold.  They came out and opened with Your Body is a Weapon, the first single off of Glitterbug.  Then followed with an older tune, Jump Into the Fog, probably because they know how to please us San Franciscans :).

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They wove in and out of the new and old albums.

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Tord brings so much energy, it’s amazing he can provide some vocals as well as play bass.

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Murph rips the guitar and writes some really interesting lyrics.

IMG_3626Glitterbug seems to be about a relationship that has gone sour but I can’t help but wonder if the album is really even about a relationship or if it’s a witty play on words.

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In the past, the Wombats have been compared to the sound of the Cure but this new album really shows their unique sound that is hard to fit into one specific genre.  It’s catchy, smart, witty, and less aggressive but still edgy.

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They have a way of pulling the crowd in without even trying.

IMG_3801They closed out the night with songs including Give Me a Try and Let’s Dance to the Joy Division.  The whole house was bumping and bouncing and since they sold out the Fillmore we were sent home with custom Wombats posters from the Fillmore.  It’s a tour that’s just getting started and I highly recommend it.  I may be biased but it’s definitely worth the ticket so go check ’em out!

How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful.

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In case you didn’t know, Chelsea and I are MAJOR Florence and the Machine fans.  I mean major.  We have followed her musical career and tours for years.  When we heard about two last minute pop up shows happening in San Francisco, we were waiting by our computers and counting down the minutes until they went on sale so we could make sure we were there on opening night at the Masonic (literally, I watched the clock countdown).  When Florence was announced to play Coachella this year, we knew a new album was on the brink and we were overjoyed.  So with further adieu, here’s our review of her first show on her new album tour (Weds April 8th, 2015)!

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We gathered all our other ride or dies for Flo’ (Tim and Lindsay), and headed to the Masonic early.  With no opener and the show said to start @ 8pm sharp, we were not messin’ around.

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This was actually my first time at the Masonic and it was perfectly cozy with the floor open for standing and the balcony with seats.

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We got some great row 2 seats close to the side of the stage.  Tim and Lindsay were on the floor.

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Flo came out around 8:30p in this awesome velour suit and we were a bit puzzled at this point because she usually wears elaborate gowns but we weren’t going to judge, she can do no wrong.  She opened with a powerful What the Water Gave Me and commanded the stage and the audience as hers.

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She started calm at the mic and then ramped up by running and dancing on each side of the stage and grabbing people’s hands and singing straight to fans in the first few rows.

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She quickly shed her jacket to reveal this beautifully large bell flow sleeved white see through blouse which she elegantly swung around with her tunes.  She went back and forth between old and new songs.  With every new song, she explained where the song came from and the meaning behind them which I loved.

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Her energy all night was high and she absolutely killed it.  When she played Dog Days, she had the entire audience shed some clothes and embrace each other.  She even ended up with a bra onstage.  She also took everyone’s gifts that they brought for her and read them, shared them with the audience and personally thanked everyone for the gift.

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If you want to get up close and personal with Florence, get in the front row at one of her shows and she will connect with you.

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Her voice sounds better in person every time.  She played How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful, St. Jude, What Kind of Man, Ship to Wreck, and a few others from the new album along with classics like No Light, No Light and Shake It Out.

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I had chills throughout the entire night her show was so magnificent and I knew ahead of time how great she was.  She’s a timeless act that’s only progressed and improved.  If you want to catch a show of a lifetime from a beautifully voiced soul, get to a Florence and Machine show!

New Music Monday.

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Chelsea and I love music and are always out in the city checking out shows.  Portugal. the Man is one of our favorites so of course we were not going to miss the chance to see them play at a small venue (the Mezzanine) in San Francisco.  On top of Portugal. the Man, three other fantastic bands played as well.  Churches, the NONONO, and the Colourist were the other acts of the night and the house was packed.

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First to play were the Colourist!  Check out some of their songs here (my favorite is Yes Yes)

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Next up was the NONONO who sang her heart out.

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CHVRCHES were incredible.  I love the song “Recover”!

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Making ourselves cozy in the top layer booths.

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Portugal. the Man closed the night and killed it!

Thursday Tunes – Dan Croll.

imageAs you know, we LOVE music at IFL.  An artist that’s been on our radar for some time is Dan Croll who stopped by San Francisco on Tuesday night.  He was supposed to play last July but had to cancel last minute.  Needless to say, I was very excited to get to hear his tunes live.  Also, since a few months had passed he also had tons of new material which all sounded amazing.  His electro-indie sound makes you feel happy and allows you to
even dance a little.  Who doesn’t love dancing?!  Definitely check Dan Croll out, he’s got some amazing talent.

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His debut song “From Nowhere” is what has been on the radio.

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His latest released song “In/Out.”

Wombats Wednesday: Your Body is a Weapon.

image(Chels and I with Murph from the Wombats last Spring when the Wombats came to the Fillmore)

I have this freakish obsession with a band called The Wombats.  I know it’s not normal anymore at this age to geek out about such a thing but let’s be honest, sometimes you can’t resist.  After a long awaited arrival of the new track off an upcoming album, I wouldn’t expect anything less than an agressively adorable title such as “Your Body is a Weapon.”  Alas, I leave you with my soon to be most played track of the month.  Thank you Wombats gods!

Funny thing about “Pompeii”

There’s in fact nothing funny about the real happenings at Pompeii but as Chelsea said in yesterday’s post, the tune was crushing the airwaves in Europe while we were there.  After Chelsea headed back to the state, I actually had the chance to see Bastille and photograph their live show in Holland!  I’d never seen them before and LOVED their live show.  So much energy and a tent full of pulsing Europeans.  It was a recipe for a good time and I enjoyed it immensely.  Check out this up and coming band that will be sure to blow your socks off if you catch them on tour this year.

IMG_2483(Their stage set up and people piling in)

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I didn’t know many of their songs besides Pompeii before I saw Bastille live but now can say I’m a huge fan of their entire album, Bad Blood.  I’ve seen a lot of bands and Bastille brought non-stop energy and good tunes.  Check them out!

Bottlerock Y’all.

So, a pair of VIP tickets to Bottlerock landed in my lap this past Thursday and while I am not a huge fan of festivals, I decided to go because I was going to be in Napa anyway! Nick and I only went on Saturday and here is my official review of the first of what I’m sure will be an annual event.

Crowd(The crowds were there, that’s for sure)

It was a very warm 85 degrees in Napa which was nice because there was a great breeze. On the other hand, it was super dirty and the Expo grounds had hay everywhere which was not great for people with allergies. Other than that, the grounds were an okay location for this event.

Janes(We watched the hysterical Jane’s Addiction play. They were great, I was super impressed and stoked that I got a chance to check them out)

Edward Sharpe(We checked out a little bit of Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeroes. They were pretty good but I think the craziest part was finding out that Dwight’s gf from “The Office” is in the band!)

Kings of Leon(Kings of Leon were amazing! I have never been able to see them before and I thought they sounded great! I am so glad they are back together!)

Adam(Our friend Adam was taking advantage of the wine portion of the festival!)

Chelsea and Nick(Nick and I taking a seat in between bands)

Overall, as much as I enjoyed seeing Kings of Leon, I would not recommend this festival (unless you get free tickets, then go). It’s overpriced for what it is and there are so many other festivals in the area that put this one to shame. It’s pretty unorganized and the stage areas are way too small for how large some of the acts are (ie Edward Sharpe). Maybe it’s because it was it’s first year but I thought security was super intense and over the top- it’s a Napa Valley festival for crying out loud. They were more concerned about people smuggling in logs of salami than weapons.  Also, they made you throw out your wine when you wanted to go into the comedy venue- only to be selling more wine inside, shady. But Kings of Leon were amazing and I am glad we went and experienced it!