What The Water Gave Me

No words. Just listen, watch and become enchanted.

What The Water Gave Me
Florence and the Machine

Mollie xo

J'adore: Rizzle Kicks

Absolutely loving Rizzle Kicks at the moment. With a combination of Jordan (Rizzle)'s rapping and Harley (Sylvester)'s soulful voice, the duo incorporates old school hip hop beats with elements of pop and i personally cannot get enough. They have a fresh sound due to the mixture of a range of instruments, beats and rhythms used in their music.

Prophet (Better Watch It): As Rizzle Kicks debut single, this is a great example of their fresh sound which i love. With an orchestral movement in the background of the chorus underneath hip hop beats and retro drumming patterns, the visuals match the music perfectly. Love the video effects.

Miss Cigarette: I love the lyrics in this track as it personifies a cigarette as if it were a woman, which i find quite clever. Using lyrics such as 'In the hope she’d leave me alone because I’m better off her but I see that spark and I just accept the offer' Rizzle Kicks create an image of being better  off without the 'girl' but also being better off without a cigarette. Just great, well thought out lyrics.

Oh! and just yesterday their youtube page released a collaboration with Ed Sheeran on his song 'You Need Me' (which rocks anywho) in which Jordan and Harley put their spin on it - check it out here. Also (nearly finished, don't worry) i love checking out the boys favourite songs and happening on their blog, it's pretty neat.

Mollie xo

Cover: Skyscraper

You, wonderful reader, are a part of history as i'm making my singing debut right here, right now. I'm a little nervous but also excited to hopefully keep track of future covers or possibly my own songs on musicandmollie. I understand this isn't the best cover in the world but any constructive criticism would be great as i'm always looking to improve. Oh, and yes i give you permission to laugh at my face when i start the bridge...i couldn't quite get the note haha.

Thankyou for listening! :)

Mollie xo

Belle Amie

I basically spent an hour last night on Belle Amie's youtube account and have literally fallen in love with them. After listening to their acoustic covers, particualrly their rendition of On a Mission;  i adored the harmonies and Esther, Sophia and Rebecca have an edgy style which sets them apart from the classic 'girl band' image. Although i did think they were one of the best girl bands that X Factor had to offer when they competed in 2010, i never realised how much potential they had. Belle Amie's debut single is called Girls Up and, although a little more pop than what i usually listen to, it's a really catchy, girl-power tune accompanied by a great video:

With their single being released in precisely 11 days, i've become a 'belle' just in time to buy it.

Now i'm off to start my own girl band. Good luck with that Mols.

Mollie xo

Sun Biz Sessions

Sun Biz Sessions have hosted many of my favourite acoustic performances from artists i can't get enough of. Acoustic covers being my preffered music choice, i just love the concept; the setting with subdued lighting along with no traces of electronic instruments allowing the music to do the talking and rightly so.

   

Ed Sheeran covers Skinny Love by Bon Iver

I love Ed Sheeran. This cover is just perfect. I love the timid yet expressive 'oh' to set the mood of the song and his imperfect endings of notes within verses really creates the most gorgeous atmosphere. However, crescndoing into the chorus, Ed really brings out his beautiful tone along with the strumming of the guitar. Bellisimo.

Ellie Goulding covers Sweet Disposition by Temper Trap

This has been on repeat for the last five days. Ellie Goulding has created a beautiful cover of Sweet Dispostion by the Temper Trap showing the gorgeous harmony and simplicity of a guitar and piano. I love the tone within Ellie's voice and the raw quality it brings when singing with expression.

I shall leave, revelling in the immenseness.

Mollie xo

Mr Posner

So i'm guessing that by the end of 2010 everyone had heard Cooler Than Me by Mike Posner. I loved the track and certainly found it a refreshing change to have in the charts. Unfortunately i didn't listen to Mike's album or researh into his other songs and covers...or i would have discovered these two beautys:

 

Dang. I can't actually stop listening to the synth beats he has incorporated into his covers of these two, quite frankly, very hard to cover songs. Putting Mike's techno, light dubstep spin into each i just love his style. Mr Posner's soft voice (and hot accent, hello!) in Halo with the changing of the lyrics to give his version of the song a different message makes it original. Whereas with The Scientist cover i adore how the beat takes the main focus, so complex and intricate but the softness towards the beginning and end makes the music rather relaxing, in a slightly odd way. I also watched how he produced Halo on his Youtube channel here and i was completely fascinated by the creation...i gotta find me some equipment.

Mollie xo

Erik Hassle

Okay so this post is way overdue but i abosolutely adore this Swedish singer. I first started listening to Erik Hassle at the beginning of last year when a friend introduced me to his single Hurtful. However, that wasn't one of my favourites so after a little bit of searching on Youtube i eventually discovered Erik's obvious talent and his soulful voice with a quirky but addictive tone that i could listen to for hours. I love his album, Pieces, mainly because of the range in genre's - crossing indie bass guitar rythms with piano ballads. His creative music style makes me swoon. gosh, i love this dude.

Not only are his original tracks great but Erik has the rare talent of turning any cover he does into his own, original style. I love his rendition of Someday aswell as Nothing Else Matters, also on the album. Speaking of, my favourite songs on the album are Don't Bring Flowers, Amelia and Whose Gonna Walk You Home - a duet with Malin Dahlstrom that gives me goosebumps everytime i lsten to it. So, the general gist of this post is to express my love for Erik Hassle...i love him.

Mollie xo

Juno

As i sit here watching one of my favourite films of all time, i can't help but fall in love with the quirky, adorably written soundtrack of Juno. The soft voices and guitar plucking in the background of (my husband) Michael Cera and Ellen Page being effortlessly cool never fails to make me enter a dream land.

Barry Louis Polisar – All I Want Is You

Kimya Dawson – My Rollercoaster

The Kinks – A Well Respected Man

Buddy Holly – (Ummm, Oh Yeah) Dearest

Mateo Messina – Up The Spout

Kimya Dawson – Tire Swing

Belle & Sebastian – Piazza, New York Catcher

Kimya Dawson – Loose Lips

Sonic Youth – Superstar

Kimya Dawson – Sleep

Belle & Sebastian – Expectations

Mott the Hoople – All The Young Dudes

Kimya Dawson – So Nice So Smart

Cat Power – Sea of Love

Kimya Dawson and Antsy Pants – Tree Hugger

The Velvet Underground – I'm Sticking With You

The Moldy Peaches – Anyone Else But You

Antsy Pants – Vampire

Michael Cera and Ellen Page – Anyone Else But You

I love each song from the soundtrack however i do have my favourites:

Barry Louis Polisar | All I Want Is You

Harmonica plus the strong accent possessing the song equates to a feel good head bobbing melody. These lyrics are so lovely, with the repetition of 'all i want is you' throughout this could easily become an alternative love song for the unique characters within the film.

Belle and Sebastian | Piazza, New York Catcher

This is just beautiful, i love the chord progressions and the lyrics complement the soft guitar strumming perfectly. I particularly love the lines, 'Oh elope with me in private and well set something ablaze. A trail for the devil to erase' and 'I love you i've a drowning grip on your adoring face'...well, the song is bursting with swooning lines.

Cat Power | Sea of Love

The simplicity within this song gets me everytime. With the basic strumming it allows Cat's beautifully toned voice to create wonderful melody's, so free and effortless. This effortless beauty, as well as the shorter than most length of the music, lets the message of love within the song shine through.

Overall, this has to be the most adorably cute yet quirky soundtrack i know. In general, i just love the romantic lyrics paired with the strong theme of guitars...i really want a ukelele now. Also, i wouldn't mind having Juno on dvd to watch over and over and over and...yeah, i just wouldn't mind that.

Mollie xo

dear musicandmollie

dear musicandmollie,

I created a blog to archive my journeys within music and to express my opinions on artists, composers and songs in general. As a musical person playing the flute to reach grade 7 (still going strong), taking it upon myself to learn piano on the keyboard when i was 12 and eventually the guitar two years ago, i just felt i could turn to blogging to write about my views and musical finds. I have a strong opinion on fame whores and 'artists' that lip-synch. They will not be making an appearance on my blog. I don't like to define myself as to what genre of music i listen to, i'm open to everything and if i like that particular piece of music then so be it. This ties in with my favourite quote: to define is to limit.

here are a few of my favourite artists...

I sing alot at home where nobody can hear me. I get very fearful of what others will think, it is a negative quality to have but i can't help but get nervous. I intend to use this blog to upload my covers/songs and keep a record of my progress in that respect also.

erm, so enjoy! :)

mollie xo