Good Listener

Lately I've started listening to Childish Gambino's Because the Internet album on repeat and I'm just as in love with it as I was the first time I listened to it. This time around, a favorite track of mine is "Sweatpants". I like how even with all the metaphors and quirky puns he uses throughout the song still keeps its rap edge.



I found this song through Spotify (which I seriously suggest every music lover download) and it took me completely by surprise. Pharrell is possibly the most talented and in demand music producer around, and to hear him rap and be so witty and fluid with his rhymes blew my mind. Of course rapping is already part of his extensive resume, but I just think that this song is particularly impressive.



San Cisco is another Spotify gem that I've discovered. Their upbeat doo-wopish sound makes for songs that have you dancing and humming in your seat. The dance competition themed music video for their song "Fred Astaire" is a perfect example of this.

Update

I've been out of town for the past couple of days and haven't had access to good wifi connection, but I have a few posts planned for this week (spoiler: one is going to be a look book). Hope everyone is having a great holiday!

June Favorites

June was a particularly music influenced month. Nylon is my favorite magazine and every year I look forward to their music issue. They always do a good job about finding new artists not just in America, but all over the world. I especially loved that Haim was on the cover because they're a favorite of mine at the moment. Speaking of favorites, Lana Del Rey, my absolute favorite singer, released her third studio album Ultraviolence. I was so excited for it that I actually went to Target the day it was released and bought the physical deluxe copy of the CD. It's the first time I've bought an actual CD in six years and it's exceeded all my expectations.

I picked up a copy Lavinia Greenlaw's The Importance of Music to Girls on a whim and it was a very good read. It was interesting to see how music from coming from America influenced the author's life in her small rural England town and actually made me feel a bit more grateful to live in a country that so many other countries are attracted to.

I've wanted a pair of high waisted shorts for long time and I seriously lucked out when I found the perfect pair on Forever 21's website. Black and incredibly comfortable, I could probably live in these shorts for the rest of my life. Another great Forever 21 find was this plaid dress. I immediately fell in love with it because it was in my three staple colors: black, white, and red. It is a bit on the short side with the front hem falling a few inches above the knee; but the back hem comes down to the top of the back of the knee so you don't have to wear shorts under it if you don't want to.

Good Listener: Songs of the Week

I've found my breakup song for whenever that dreaded first heartbreak comes. In an ode to failed love, Haim's funky alterna-rock track "If I Could Change Your Mind" will have you dancing through your tears.



Never have I seen a music video compliment a song so well and Sia's unique, raspy voice shines in "Chandelier". You can feel the emotion in every word sung, and the dancer in the video (Maddie Ziegler from Dance Moms) interprets the song with her body, demonstrating technique and discipline way beyond her years.



One of the things that I love about Bastille is the way that their lyrics are written like stories so you can picture everything in your head. "Poet" is my favorite song from Bad Blood, and it tells the story of being so consumed by love for someone that you create your own love story in your head. As a writer, I can definitely relate to this.



Surf punk, to me, sounds best in the summer. Best Coast is my go-to band because because of their smooth melodies and lyrics so catchy that you really can't help but to sing along. If you close your eyes while listening to "Our Deal" you might just transport yourself to a beach hidden deep in your subconscious (but if you want to watch the "West Side Story" themed video, that's cool too).

The Importance of Music to Girls by Lavinia Greenlaw: Review

From dancing in long floral skirts in a folk dancing class as a young girl, to wallowing in the complete and teenage angst of her punk years (accompanied by the occasional run in with the police), Lavinia Greenlaw's  memoir The Importance of Music to Girls illustrates her life from childhood to late adolescence.

Just from the title, I assumed that the book would be about how girls in general find identity through different music genres; which it did, just not in the way I thought. (So why doesn't she just call it The Importance of Music to Lavinia Greenlaw?) Well that's just it: Greenlaw is retelling events from her younger years in a universal way that makes them relatable.

For example, during her love affair with disco music, she describes all too well the lengths that most, if not all girls go through to fit in with a specific group of friends: dressing alike, acting alike, synchronized laughter. In this section of the book, she talks about the group's leader, Tina:

"I was becoming a girl as instructed by girls but I knew I wasn't a real girl, at least not of this kind. I wanted to be a disco girl like Tina, whose every aspect conformed to some golden section of girldom: her height relative to her shape, her prettiness relative to her smartness, her niceness relative to her toughness...To me she was wise and ruthless, a goddess of war."

Reading between the lines of her memories, we're able to see that even though she seemingly had it all together with her newfound group of friends, she still felt alone and disconnected from them. The only real thing they all had in common was their love for the music that they would spend numerous Saturday nights dancing to.

As the book and different music phases go on, Greenlaw develops as sense of self through her relationship with music rather than through her friends and what they think is cool. The first example of her independence was when she bought a pair of straight legged jeans and wore them to her local youth club one Saturday night where she was then laughed at. Even though the people laughing were the same people that she had wanted so badly to fit in with, she didn't care. In her words, "After three years of trying to fit in, I liked the idea of being different."

The Importance of Music to Girls is available at all major booksellers for $15.

Idlessence is on Bloglovin

Just a post to say that I've linked Idlessence to Blogvin so you can follow it through the link if you like!
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What's In My Bag?

I got the idea for this post from YouTube, because lots of girls post videos of them talking about what's in their handbags. Maybe it's just me, but I've kind of always been fascinated by what other girls carry in their handbags. You know the phrase "you can tell a lot about a person by how they dress"? Well, you can tell a lot about a girl by what's in her bag.

The Essentials

The three things that I never leave my house without are my wallet, iPhone, sunglasses, and keys. Sadly, there are those off days where I forget my headphones at home and am forced to go through the day without music (as you can see from the picture, today was not one of those days, thankfully). My wallet is from Ross and has a little compartment for my phone, my sunglasses are from Forever 21, my purple key FOB is from an old purse, and the grey wristband is actually an Ed Sheeran wristband I bought from his online merch store.

Reading Material

I'm really big on reading, so I always try to have a book or a magazine in my bag. Right now, I'm reading the Virgin Suicides by Jeffrey Eugenides. Some of my friends have already read and watched the movie and have positive things (even though it is a bit of a wrist-slasher), so I figured I'd give it a read. Vogue is one of my favorite magazines and, since I hope to one day write for a magazine, I'm always reading them and making notes on different articles, pictures, and advertisement placements (which you can see by the sticky notes sticking out from the top).

Writing Essentials

As a writer, over the years I've learned that it's good to carry a notebook with you at all times. This particular notebook serves as a journal for any personal stuff, ideas for writing, and I sometimes glue interesting pictures that I find and want to keep. There are also some sticky notes for when I need to quickly jot something down or when I'm making notes in a magazine.

Beauty Essentials

I'm not the biggest fan of makeup, but it's good to at least carry the basic mascara/eyeliner/lip balm trio. Since I wear contacts, I always have my contact case along contact solution, and in addition to smelling amazing, the mini hand sanitizers from Bath and Body Works should be considered a staple for any girl's handbag.

You can find my bag from Forever 21 here