Top 15 Songs of 2015

Hey, y'all! This is the sixth post in a 10-post series listing some of my favorite things. The first seven posts are lists of my current all-time favorites, while the last 3 posts include only favorites of 2015.

If you want to check out the other lists/posts in this series, you can check them out here:

A Few of My Favorite Things [2015]

This list is my list of my top 15 favorite songs of 2015. These are all, obviously, songs released in 2015. I didn't pay any attention to album song vs. single, and I definitely didn't limit it to one song per artist. There are some songs that, on technicality, should've made this list, but because the album they appear on wasn't released until 2016 (*cough*The Death of a Bachelor*cough*), I decided to save them for the 2016 list.

#15) Lean On by Pentatonix

This one is actually replacing a song (by George Ezra) that iTunes said came out in 2015, but was actually released in 2014. Oops. This would be really high up on the list, because it's one of my favorite songs on the Pentatonix album, but I didn't want to include any covers. So I just added this one once the last two songs on this list had to get nixed, because it's a really awesome cover.

#14) Crave by Parachute

I'm so glad that Parachute is back. I've grown to love this new sound that they have, and hope that their new CD is as great as this single!

#13) This Means War by Marianas Trench

There were a couple standout songs on the new Marianas Trench album, Astoria, and this was one of them. I just really enjoy this song and it's fun to blast and jam to.

#12) Shut Up and Kiss Me by Marianas Trench

This is my favorite song on Astoria. It's got this really cool throwback vibe to the Jackson 5's song ABC. It's just a really fun one, and I love to blast it. Apparently, Josh wrote this as if he were writing for a Motown group, and I love it. 

#11) Old Scars/Future Hearts by All Time Low

This one actually really grew on me. Upon first listening to the CD, I thought it was alright. By the time that I talked about it on The CDs on My Shelf, I'd grown to really love it. This one has a grittier sound than ATL usually does, but it still sounds very ATL. For some reason, it makes me think of Billie Joe Armstrong from Green Day, and I love that about it. 

#10) Dancing With A Wolf by All Time Low

This is easily my favorite song on Future Hearts. The first time I listened to it, it grabbed my attention and I fell in love with it. It's just such a fun song to jam to, and I love that about it.

#9) Na Na Na by Pentatonix

This is Mitch's solo on the Pentatonix album, and I (obvs) really love it. I prefer his solo on Lean On, but that's lower down because of the fact that it's a cover. Anyway, this is definitely one of my favorite songs on Pentatonix's album, and it's just really fun and Mitch sounds amazing on it.

#8) Good To Be Alive (Hallelujah) by Andy Grammer

I love Andy Grammer, and when I realized that he had a new single, I got really excited and went to listen to it... and completely fell in love with it. It was an instantaneous love and it's been on a pretty constant repeat ever since. 

#7) Ref by Pentatonix

This Pentatonix song is just really interesting. The vibe to it is really cool, and really fits with where they've taken their sound with this CD. This is another one that I just like to blast. Scott's voice on the chorus is awesome too. 

#6) Can't Sleep Love by Pentatonix

I'll admit, this one took some warming up to. I hated the "uh huh"s and "yeah"s (and I still hate them. Like a lot.) and that really tainted my view of the song. But it's got such a cool vibe and they perform it amazingly live and it's just really grown on me, and I love it. Mitch's high notes/chorus are amazing.

#5) Shut Up and Dance by Walk the Moon

This was my summer jam. Not even kidding, it has 150 plays on my iTunes. Like... what? But I almost forgot that I enjoyed it as much as I did, because I haven't been listening to it quite as much since the summer. But it was definitely an awesome one, so I had to include it. 

#4) Lane Boy by Twenty One Pilots

I fell in love with Twenty One Pilots this year, and this song was one of the ones that I really attached to. I just think that it's really interesting and unique and I love it.

#3) Cracked by Pentatonix

I was impressed when I first heard this one, but it took me a while to really fall in love with it. Scott's vocals on this one are so impressive and he takes me to church with this. So great. 

#2) Sing by Pentatonix

This one is probably my favorite one on Pentatonix's album. That might change in like 10 minutes, but I think this one is my fave. It's just so fun to jam to, and I like that they all trade off and get to feature, and it's just... fun. 

#1) Stressed Out by Twenty One Pilots

And here we are, my favorite song of the year. Originally, I preferred Lane Boy, but this one has grown on me. I love the message of the song, and I love how quirky Twenty One Pilots is. This one is just great. 

So, those are my top 15 favorite songs of 2015. Let me know down in the comments what you think of the songs on this list, and what some of your favorite songs of 2015 are!

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A Few of My Favorite Things [2015]

Hey, y'all! So it's been quite a while since I've been able to post, mostly because I've been insanely swamped this semester with tons and tons of work. I've already been on break for almost two weeks now, but I've spent pretty much the entire time just doing work for my research assistant position and finishing up my graduate school applications. But, FINALLY, I have finished most of the work that I have to do and can finally do some of the fun things that I've really missed over the past few months.

And, once again, it's the end of this year and the beginning of the new year and that means it's once again time for my "favorite things" lists. And this year, I'm going to be doing things a little differently. In the past, I've had a single post listing my all time favorite movies, tv shows, bands, etc. and a single post listing my favorite albums and songs of the year. This year, I'm going to be doing a 10 day posting marathon- one post per day, with one list apiece. These lists, unlike in the past, are not necessarily top 10 lists. They will vary in length depending on how much I'm able to narrow down that particular list.

The posting marathon will begin on January 1st, and the posting schedule with go as follows:

[Posts will be linked below once they go live]

January 1: Favorite Movies

January 2: Favorite TV Shows

January 3: Favorite Bands

January 4: Favorite Albums

January 5: Favorite Songs

January 6: Favorite YouTubers (non-booktube)

January 7: Favorite Booktubers

January 8: Favorite Albums of 2015

January 9: Favorite Songs of 2015

January 10: Ranking All of the Books I Read in 2015

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Thanks for reading! If you like my posts, I'd really appreciate if you'd subscribe/follow so that I know you're enjoying what I'm posting! See y'all soon!

Paramore- Brand New Eyes

Hey, y'all! It's time for me to talk about another CD on my shelf! As always, I put my iTunes on shuffle, and the CD containing the first song that played is the one I'll be talking about!

Release Date: September 29, 2009

Genre: Pop punk, Alternative

When I bought the CD: If I remember correctly, I got it when it came out.

Track Listing

1. Careful
2. Ignorance
3. Playing God
4. Brick by Boring Brick
5. Turn It Off
6. The Only Exception
7. Feeling Sorry
8. Looking Up
9. Where the Lines Overlap
10. Misguided Ghosts
11. All I Wanted

Paramore lineup on this CD:
Hayley Williams- vocals, keyboards
Josh Farro- lead guitar
Taylor York- rhythm guitar
Jeremy Davis- bass
Zac Farro- drums, percussion

L-R: Taylor, Josh, Hayley, Zac, and Jeremy

About Paramore: 
Paramore has been a band since 2004. So far, they've released 4 CDs: All We Know Is Falling in 2005, Riot! in 2007, Brand New Eyes in 2009, and Paramore in 2013. The band has gone through several lineup changes. I mean seriously, their Wikipedia page has an actual TIMELINE showing the changes:

However, the timeline is partially inaccurate, because Hunter Lamb did NOT play on Riot!, and Taylor York didn't join Paramore until later, and I believe it was 2009. Josh Farro played all the guitar parts on Riot!, and Taylor was a touring member until just before Brand New Eyes.

My Opinion about Paramore:
Paramore was the first alternative band I got into, and they're actually what caused me to begin listening to alternative music. In the gap between Brand New Eyes and Paramore, I didn't listen to them quite as much and they fell down a bit on my list of favorite bands, but they've always been among my top 10 bands, and have been a staple in my ever-changing list of favorites.

About the CD:  

This was the first Paramore CD with Taylor York, and the last one with the Farro brothers. Some of the songs were actually part of the reason that they left the band. Hayley and Josh had dated and broken up, causing Hayley to write songs about it as well as writing some songs that the brothers didn't really agree with. It caused a lot of tension, and with other factors, eventually caused them to leave. Which, as we know, was very traumatic to Paramore fans everywhere.

IMHO: 
I don't think I'd call this one of my favorite Paramore CDs. It's one of those CDs with some really amazing songs, and then some songs that I've maybe listened to 5 times ever. If that. And pretty much every song on the CD falls into one of those two categories.

As always, I'm going to give each song a rating out of 10 and then give a brief explanation of why it got that rating. 

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Careful- 7.5/10. This is one of the only songs that falls somewhere in the middle for me. I thought it was one of my least favorites on the CD, but as I listen to it again, I realize that it's pretty middle of the pack. It's not great, but not as forgettable as some other songs on this CD.

Ignorance- 10/10. First off, the music on this is just really awesome. Hayley's vocals are awesome as always, and the lyrics are really great too. It's just a really great combination of everything.

Playing God- 10/10. This is possibly my all-time favorite Paramore song. I haven't really thought too seriously about what my favorite Paramore song is, but I know that this would be in my top 5, if not right at #1. The lyrics in this song are so phenomenal. There are so many lines that I absolutely love.

Brick by Boring Brick- 10/10. Hayley's vocals are just really cool on this one. I really love the lyrics on this one as well, especially in the chorus. I don't often think about lyrics in a song (typical instrumentalist) but I've mentioned Hayley's lyrics 3 times already. Hayley writes great lyrics.

Turn It Off- 8/10. Honestly, Hayley's vocals and lyrics in the chorus are what I really like about this song. It's not my favorite on the CD, but it's better than most of them.

The Only Exception- 9/10. I think this song had a little too much hype as a single. Everyone seemed completely enthralled with it. I really enjoyed it too, but I felt like everyone made a bigger deal of it than they needed to. It's beautifully simple, and I really like that.  And of course, Hayley's vocals and lyrics are on-point.

Feeling Sorry- 7/10. I get this one and Looking Up confused constantly. The entire song feels like it's going nowhere. It does have a nice high point, but the rest of the song seems pretty flat.

Looking Up- 7/10. I get this and Feeling Sorry confused, and they have the same problems as well. I just feel like most of this song is flat. Once again, there are a few seconds near the end that are nice, but overall, meh.

Where the Lines Overlap- 6/10. If I were to describe this song in one word, it would be boring. I can never remember how the song goes until I listen to it. It's forgettable and boring.

Misguided Ghosts- 6.5/10. Like with Where the Lines Overlap, I always forget what this song sounds like. I gave it a slightly higher rating because I like it better than Where the Lines Overlap, but they have basically the same problems.

All I Wanted- 10/10. Those lyrics. Those vocals. Wow. I have nothing else to say about this song. Just wow.

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Favorite Songs: Playing God, All I Wanted, Brick by Boring Brick, Ignorance

Least Favorite Songs: Where the Lines Overlap and Misguided Ghosts

Video! 

Playing God music video

All I Wanted video

Rating: 8.5/10. It makes me really sad that this CD has so many really amazing songs, but so many not-so-great songs mixed in with it.

Hope you liked my newest "The CDs on my Shelf" post! Have any questions? Do you like Paramore? Let me know in the comments!

I've started doing Booktube a little as well, so if you want to check that out, you can click HERE. I plan to post most of my videos to my blog, but just in case I miss one or decide not to post it on here, that will keep you up-to date. 

I've also created a Facebook page for my blog, so if you want to check that out and like it, you can click HERE. I'll try to keep that pretty up-to-date with new posts and such.

Thanks for reading! If you like my posts, I'd really appreciate if you'd subscribe/follow so that I know you're enjoying what I'm posting! See y'all soon!

We The Kings- Smile Kid

Hey, y'all! It's time for me to talk about another CD on my shelf! As always, I put my iTunes on shuffle, and the CD containing the first song that played is the one I'll be talking about!

Release Date: December 8, 2009

Genre: Pop punk, Alternative, Power pop

When I bought the CD: I'm pretty sure I pre-ordered it and got it the day it came out... but don't quote me on that. I know I got it sometime near when it came out.

Track Listing

1. She Takes Me High
2. Promise The Stars
3. Heaven Can Wait
4. The Story of Your Life
5. Rain Falls Down
6. Summer Love
7. In-n-Out (Animal Style)
8. Spin
9. Anna-Maria (All We Need)
10. We'll Be A Dream (feat. Demi Lovato)
11. What You Do To Me

We The Kings lineup on this CD:
Travis Clark- vocals, guitar, piano
Hunter Thomsen- guitar
Drew Thomsen- bass
Danny Duncan- drums

L-R: Hunter, Danny, Travis, Drew

About We The Kings: 
The four founding members of We The Kings grew up together in Bradenton, Florida, and formed We The Kings in 2005. They released their self-titled debut in 2007, and got their first big radio success with Check Yes Juliet. They've since released 3 more CDs: Smile Kid (2009), Sunshine State of Mind (2011), and Somewhere Somehow (2013). In 2011, Drew left the band and was replaced by Charles Trippy, a youtuber who was close friends with the band. Also in 2011, Coley O'Toole joined the band as guitarist and keyboardist.

My Opinion about We The Kings:
Back when their self-titled debut was the only CD they had out, We The Kings was one of my favorite bands. I had them probably in my top 3 bands (alongside The Academy Is... and All Time Low). However, as they continued releasing more and more music, I started listening to them less and less. Their music has become gradually more and more pop and less punk, and I just don't really care about their music anymore. I still really love the old stuff, and it's not like I hate the new stuff... they're just not as good as they used to be.

About the CD:  

Two fairly successful singles spawned from Smile Kid: Heaven Can Wait and We'll Be A Dream. And honestly, that's the only thing of note that I really have to say about the CD

IMHO: 
It's OK. I was really disappointed with the CD after their really great debut. There are some songs on the CD that I really enjoy, but the rest are just filler for me. And I honestly can't remember the last time I listened to any of these songs. Even the ones I like.

As always, I'm going to give each song a rating out of 10 and then give a brief explanation of why it got that rating. 

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She Takes Me High- 9/10. I think this is a really strong opener. It's got a really fun chorus and it's really up-tempo and full of energy.

Promise The Stars- 10/10. I really enjoy this song. It's so cutesy and adorable that you can't help but love it. I dare you to try and listen to this without swaying/tapping your food/ nodding your head/etc. It's not possible.

Heaven Can Wait- 10/10. When I first heard this song, I got really excited about the CD because if every song on the CD was similar to this one, it would be super strong. Unfortunately, that's not the case, but this is classic WTK.

The Story of Your Life- 8.5/10. The chorus and bridge are really cool. The vocals and guitar combine really interestingly and I really like it. I'm not a huge fan of the verses though. If only the whole things could be like the chorus.

Rain Falls Down- 7/10. This suffers from the same problem that The Story of Your Life has. The verses aren't interesting, but the chorus is kinda interesting. But this one gets a 7 because both the chorus and verses aren't as good as those in The Story of Your Life.

Summer Love- 10/10. This song is just a breath of fresh air for me. This has the classic WTK sound that has been missing from a lot of this CD. And it's just so much fun. I really love this one.

In-n-Out (Animal Style)- 8/10. I'm seeing a pattern here. I really like WTK's choruses, but I'm not always a fan of their verses. I like the really cool effects in the transitions, but I wish the verses were stronger.

Spin- 7.5/10. Guess what? The chorus is strong, and the verses aren't! I love the lyrics in the chorus, as well as the guitar at the end of the chorus. But those verses... nope.

Anna-Maria (All We Need)- 6/10. I feel like this song doesn't really go anywhere. The verses aren't that interesting, and then they build up to what sounds like it will be a cool chorus, but it actually ends up being just about as uninteresting as the verses.

We'll Be A Dream (feat. Demi Lovato)- 9/10. When I saw that this song had Demi Lovato on it, I avoided listening to it, because that was the time when Demi was basically the Disney queen and I wanted nothing to do with that. When I finally listened to it, however, I actually really enjoyed it. And while my least favorite part of the song is the fact that she's on it, it's otherwise really great. And I generally don't like slower songs so that's kinda an accomplishment. The chorus is also pretty great and the harmonies are cool. Big surprise.

What You Do To Me- 6.5/10. The verses are pretty uninteresting. The chorus is slightly cooler, but I've never been a big fan of this song.

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Favorite Songs: Promise The Stars, Heaven Can Wait, and Summer Love

Least Favorite Songs: Anna Maria (All We Need) and What You Do To Me

Video! 

Heaven Can Wait music video (which is really hilarious)

Promise The Stars music video (possibly the funniest thing ever)

Rating: 8/10. I considered giving this a 7.5 because it's so all over the place, but when looking at how I rated other CDs, I thought it fit in with the 8 crowd. It's nowhere near as good as their debut, but it's certainly not a bad CD.


Hope you liked my newest "The CDs on my Shelf" post! Have any questions? What are your opinions on We The Kings? Did you love Check Yes Juliet as much as I did?! Let me know in the comments. If you like my posts, I'd really appreciate if you'd subscribe/follow, because it lets me know y'all are liking them! Hope you enjoyed! Comment, comment, comment! I love feedback! Thanks for reading!


ALSO: Apologies for the lack of a Secret Lightning Scar chapter on Saturday. It came to Friday night and I still hadn't written anything and I was definitely not in the mood to write. I have since started the next chapter, so it will be out as usual. I'm going to make up for it by flip flopping. This Saturday will be a new chapter of The Secret Lighning Scar, and next Saturday will be a new Tumblr challenge. Then, since this month has 5 Mondays, Monday the 29th will be another new chapter of The Secret Lightning Scar. So you'll get the exact same number of posts that you were supposed to get, they'll just be slightly out of order. Make sense? Cool. Thanks for reading! See y'all Saturday!

30 Artists, 30 Days Challenge

Hey, y'all! It's finally time to re-start my series! I have a One Day Tumblr Challenge post for you today. It's the 30 Artists 30 Days 1 Day Challenge. I had a lot of fun doing this, and surprisingly it wasn't terribly difficult for me to come up with this list. Let's get into this challenge, shall we?!

Pick any 30 of your favourite artists, in no particular order, and post the following info about one of them each day.

Artist:

Favourite Song(s):

Favourite Album:

Favourite Lyrics:

Seen them live?

1) Artist: McFly

Favourite Song(s): Lies, Sorry's Not Good Enough, Five Colours In Her Hair, That Girl, and Transylvania.

Favourite Album:

Favourite Lyrics: "Galaxy Defenders stay forever" (Star Girl) and "Another year over and we're still together. It's not always easy, but I'm here forever." (The Heart Never Lies)
They're really simple, but both of those quotes are typically used for McFly and their fanbase- McFly call their fans the Galaxy Defenders.

Seen them live? Unfortunately, no. They rarely tour America, and I don't have the time or the means to travel to Europe to see them play. Maybe one day...

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2) Artist: All Time Low

Favourite Song(s): Weightless, Shameless, and Poppin' Champagne are some of my favorites, but I haven't really compiled an actual list.

Favourite Album:

Favourite Lyrics: "Manage me, I'm a mess. Turn a page, I'm a book, half unread", "Maybe it's not my weekend, but it's gonna be my year. And I'm so sick of watching while the minutes pass as I go nowhere. And this is my reaction to everything I fear, 'cause I've been going crazy, I don't wanna waste another minute here." (Weightless)

Seen them live? Once again, unfortunately no. But I plan to see them sometime while I'm in college!

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3)Artist: Pentatonix

Favourite Song(s): Aha!, Starships, Can't Hold Us, Daft Punk, Royals, and Thrift Shop.

Favourite Album:

Favourite Lyrics: "But that's what you get when Texas raised you!" (Can't Hold Us)

Seen them live? Yes! I went and saw them live in March!

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4)Artist: Parachute

Favourite Song(s): Kiss Me Slowly and Back Again are probably my top 2

Favourite Album:

Favourite Lyrics: "I should've spoken up, I should've proudly claimed, that oh my head's to blame for all my heart's mistakes" (The Mess I Made)

Seen them live? Nope.

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5)Artist: The Audition

Favourite Song(s): You've Made Us Conscious, My Temperature's Rising, Make It Rain, and You Ruined This.

Favourite Album:

Favourite Lyrics: "Cancel our subscription, we don't, we don't need your issues anymore." (Rep Your Clique)

Seen them live? Nope, and I don't think I'll get the chance to, since they don't seem to be playing shows anymore.

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6)Artist: Never Shout Never

Favourite Song(s): Can't Stand It, Piggy Bank, First Dance, Trouble, and I Just Laugh.

Favourite Album:

Favourite Lyrics: "See, I've been working my whole life trying to prove the pissy people wrong. That you can earn an honest living with an old guitar and a couple old-fashioned songs" (Piggy Bank)

Seen them live? Unfortunately, no.

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7)Artist: The Academy Is...

Favourite Song(s): Black Mamba, We've Got A Big Mess On Our Hands, The Phrase That Pays, About A Girl, and Neighbors.

Favourite Album:

Favourite Lyrics: "Oh, Mr. Magazine, I never wrote one single thing for you or your so-called music scene. You don't mean a thing to me." (Black Mamba)

Seen them live? Nope, never got to see them live before they disbanded.

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8)Artist: Paramore

Favourite Song(s): Playing God, Born For This, Emergency, and Ain't It Fun.

Favourite Album:

Favourite Lyrics: "It's just my humble opinion, but it's one that I believe in- You don't deserve a point of view if the only thing you see is you." (Playing God. Pretty much all the lyrics in this song are great, but that's my favorite.)

Seen them live? Nope, unfortunately I have not.

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9)Artist: Hey Monday

Favourite Song(s): Josey, Homecoming, Obvious, and Hangover.

Favourite Album:

Favourite Lyrics: "I can't think of anybody else who I hate to miss as much as I hate missing you." (6 Months)

Seen them live? Nope, and since they're on "hiatus" (c'mon, let's be real here, Cassadee is doing her own solo thing. Clearly they've broken up) I'm pretty sure I never will.

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10)Artist: Busted

Favourite Song(s): She Wants To Be Me, Year 3000, Meet You There, and Nerdy.

Favourite Album:

Favourite Lyrics: "My girlfriend is a wannabe, and she wants to be me." (She Wants To Be Me)

Seen them live? Nope, and I want to see McBusted but I CAN'T!

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11)Artist: Sleeping With Sirens

Favourite Song(s): Do It Now Remember It Later, Congratulations, Roger Rabbit, and If You Can't Hang

Favourite Album:

Favourite Lyrics: "We'll do what we want right now, with or without you. We will never regret that." (Do It Now Remember It Later)

Seen them live? Nope, unfortunately I have not.

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12)Artist: Pierce The Veil

Favourite Song(s): King For A Day, Hell Above, Bulls In The Bronx, and One Hundred Sleepless Nights

Favourite Album:

Favourite Lyrics: "I've been having this dream that we can fly, so maybe if we never wake up, we can see the sky." (Bulls In The Bronx)

Seen them live? Nope, unfortunately I have not.

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13)Artist: Green Day

Favourite Song(s): Minority, She's a Rebel, F.O.D., American Idiot, and East Jesus Nowhere. And Warning.

Favourite Album:

Favourite Lyrics: "I wanna be the minority. I don't need your authority. Down with the moral majority, 'cause I wanna be the minority. Stepped out of the line, like a sheep runs from the herd. Marching out of time to my own beat now, the only way I know." (Minority)

Seen them live? Nope, unfortunately I have not.

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14)Artist: Fall Out Boy

Favourite Song(s): I Don't Care, Dance Dance, Save Rock and Roll, and Sugar We're Goin' Down.

Favourite Album:

Favourite Lyrics: "You can only blame your problems on the world so long before it all becomes the same old song." (The (Shipped) Gold Standard)

Seen them live? Nope, unfortunately I have not.

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15)Artist: Panic! At The Disco

Favourite Song(s): London Beckoned Songs About Money Written By Machines, Do You Know What I'm Seeing?, This Is Gospel, and I Write Sins Not Tragedies.

Favourite Album:

Favourite Lyrics: "Just for the record, the weather today is slightly sarcastic with a good chance of A. Indifference and B. Disinterest in what the critics say." (London Beckoned Songs About Money Written By Machines)

Seen them live? Nope, unfortunately I have not.

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16)Artist: My Chemical Romance

Favourite Song(s): Teenagers, I'm Not Okay (I Promise), Welcome To The Black Parade, and SING.

Favourite Album:

Favourite Lyrics: "They're gonna rip up your heads, your aspirations to shreds, another cog in the murder machine." (Teenagers)

Seen them live? Nope, and I'm sad that I won't get to see them live ever.

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17)Artist: The Spill Canvas

Favourite Song(s): All Over You, Bleed Everyone's Doing It, Appreciation and the Bomb, and Our Song.

Favourite Album:

Favourite Lyrics: "If there's one thing I've learned, it's that we never feel the heat until we get burned. But we try so hard not to die, sometimes we forget to appreciate life." (Appreciation and the Bomb)

Seen them live? Yes! And I met them and got a shirt signed!

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18)Artist: Cage The Elephant

Favourite Song(s): In One Ear, Always Something, Ain't No Rest For The Wicked, and Free Love.

Favourite Album:

Favourite Lyrics: "They say that we ain't got the style, we ain't got the class, we ain't got the tunes that's gonna put us on the map, and I'm a phony in disguise tryin' to make the radio, I'm an antisocial anarchist, I sound like so-and-so. They say I'm just a stupid kid, a crazy radical, rock & roll is dead, I probably should've stayed in school. Another generation X who somehow slipped up through the cracks, Oh they'd love to see me fall but I'm already on my back. But it goes in one ear and right out the other. " (In One Ear)

Seen them live? Nope, unfortunately not.

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19)Artist: 30 Seconds To Mars

Favourite Song(s): Closer To The Edge, The Kill, Kings and Queens, and Up In The Air

Favourite Album:

Favourite Lyrics: "No, no, no, no, I will never forget. (No, no) I will never regret. (No, no) I will live my life." (Closer To The Edge)

Seen them live? Nope, unfortunately.

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20)Artist: Marianas Trench

Favourite Song(s): Stutter, Cross My Heart, Celebrity Status, and Haven't Had Enough

Favourite Album:

Favourite Lyrics: "For a first effort, this feels kinda last-ditch. I guess this just got kinda drastic. These desperate times call for desperate measures" (Desperate Measures)

Seen them live? Nope, unfortunately not.

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21)Artist: A Rocket to the Moon

Favourite Song(s): Mr. Right, Life of the Party, Annabelle, and Whole Lotta You.

Favourite Album:

Favourite Lyrics: "I grew up on The Beatles, and you were raised on the Stones. You're a little bit country, yeah, and I play rock and roll" (You're My Song)

Seen them live? Nope, and since they broke up, I guess I won't be able to.

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22)Artist: Sick Puppies

Favourite Song(s): Riptide, Maybe, and Odd One

Favourite Album:

Favourite Lyrics: "I won't justify the way I live my life, 'cause I'm the one living it, feeling it, tasting it, and you're just wasting your time trying to throw me a line when you're the one drowning. I like where I'm at, on my back, floating down in my own riptide, the water is fine." (Riptide)

Seen them live? Nope, I haven't.

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23)Artist: Son of Dork

Favourite Song(s): Slacker, Ticket Outta Loserville, Boy Band, and Murdered In The Mosh

Favourite Album:

Favourite Lyrics: "Good Charlotte said they like McFly, is half their fanbase gonna cry?" (Boy Band)
"Give it up, your friends will find out now or later. Time for change. Just be yourself, don't be a faker." (Murdered In The Mosh)

Seen them live? Nope, and I never will because they recorded a single CD and broke up in 2007.

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24)Artist: The Summer Set

Favourite Song(s): Someone Like You, Chelsea, Punch-Drunk Love, and Thick as Thieves

Favourite Album:

Favourite Lyrics: "It's too bad the boys you do get back at you. You can't forget the monsters in your bed." (The Boys You Do)

Seen them live? Nope, I have not.

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25)Artist: We The Kings

Favourite Song(s): Skyway Avenue, Check Yes Juliet, Stay Young, and Secret Valentine.

Favourite Album:

Favourite Lyrics: "'Cause if you jump, I will jump too. We will fall together from the building's ledge, never looking back at what we've done. We'll say it was love. 'Cause I would die for you on Skyway Avenue." (Skyway Avenue)

Seen them live? Nope, unfortunately not.

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26)Artist: Ed Sheeran

Favourite Song(s): You Need Me I Don't Need You, Gold Rush, The A Team, and Grade 8.

Favourite Album:

Favourite Lyrics: "Call yourself a singer-writer, you're just bluffing. Name's on the credits, and you didn't write nothing." (You Need Me, I Don't Need You)

Seen them live? Nope, unfortunately not.

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27)Artist: Andy Grammer

Favourite Song(s): Fine By Me, Miss Me, Lunatic, and Biggest Man in Los Angeles

Favourite Album:

Favourite Lyrics: "All I really need for my life to feel complete are some ears to hear me dream." (Biggest Man in Los Angeles)

Seen them live? Nope, unfortunately not.

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28)Artist: Hunter Hayes

Favourite Song(s): Storm Warning, Love Makes Me, Somebody's Heartbreak, and Everybody's Got Somebody But Me.

Favourite Album:

Favourite Lyrics: "If you're gonna be somebody's heartbreak, if you're gonna be somebody's mistake, if you're gonna be somebody's first time, somebody's last time, baby be mine. If you're looking to be somebody's just friends, a little laugh, a little love, and never calling again, that's just fine. If you're gonna be somebody's heartbreak, be mine." (Somebody's Heartbreak)

Seen them live? Nope. I wish I would've seen him earlier in his career though, because he had coffee meetups before his concerts. But he's probably too big of a name for that anymore.

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29)Artist: Falling In Reverse (how did I forget them until now?!)

Favourite Song(s): I'm Not A Vampire, Pick Up The Phone, Raised By Wolves, and Bad Girls Club.

Favourite Album:

Favourite Lyrics: "Hi, my name is Ronnie, I'm an addict. Daddy should've never raised me on Black Sabbath." (I'm Not A Vampire)
"Sexy, please text me, I'm ready for you" (Good Girls Bad Guys)
(If you couldn't tell, I'm using these because of how absolutely ridiculous they are. The first makes me giggle, the second makes me facepalm.)

Seen them live? Nope, I haven't.

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30)Artist: Boys Like Girls

Favourite Song(s): The Great Escape, Heels Over Head, Thunder, and Dance Hall Drug.

Favourite Album:

Favourite Lyrics: "Your voice was the soundtrack of my summer. Do you know you're unlike any other? You'll always be my thunder." (Thunder)

Seen them live? Nope, I have not.

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Whew, that was a lot of artists. I had a really tough time deciding which artists to use and which to not use. But I feel like I mostly got bands and singers that I really like and have listened to on repeat. I hope you enjoyed this post! Regular series posts are continuing soon, along with my Harry Potter discussion posts. Should be only a couple days before my Chamber of Secrets post! I also plan to get a series post up sometime this week as well!

Thanks for reading! If you like my posts, don't forget to subscribe/follow, since it lets me know that you're enjoying what I'm doing. See y'all in a few days!

21 Things About You Challenge

1) What is your name and were you named after anyone?

If I haven't already said it somewhere on here, my name is Kristen! And I wasn't named after anyone, my parents just liked the name. My mom did tell me, though, that if she'd had another daughter, her name would be Reagan. 

2) What are your top 3 favorite colors?

Ooh, only 3? I'm gonna do this just saying black isn't a color. Because... it's kinda not. But I love black. 

Because I'm really picky, I'll link the exact shade I'm talking about 

My favorite color is red. . I also love turquoise/teal, which are technically 2 different colors, but since most people lump them together and assume they're the same, I will too. I also really love purple.

3) What kind of people do you surround yourself with?

Hmm... well, in August, I went off to college, and the only real connecting thread through most of the friends I made was the fact that like me, they don't drink and don't party. So basically, I'm drawn to straightedge people like myself. Another requirement is usually liking Harry Potter, but that's different.

4) List four goals you plan to accomplish in the future

-graduate college with a degree in music and psychology!

- learn to play some instruments better

-publish a book

-do something with my life

5) List five things that make you happy

puppies, dr. pepper, stuffed animals, good music, and youtube.

6) Describe yourself in a lengthy paragraph

Lengthy? Lengthy is my middle name. I go way too into detail with almost everything. I'm a walking confusing contradiction. I obsess over things pretty easily and one of my biggest obsessions is Harry Potter. I use my house to describe myself. I'm a Slytherclaw- combo of Ravenclaw and Slytherin. I'm a grammar nazi. I'm a huge music snob, and I love good music more than almost anything else. I've gotten extremely interested in psychology in recent months, and have decided to study it in college, along with music. If my plans go correctly, I want to do research on music and the brain. I'm also a pretty big nerd in general, and I enjoy being by myself a lot. My favorite thing about being home for the summer (besides spending time with family) is not having a roommate and being able to stay up late in bed on my laptop, like I am now. I love and appreciate almost anything artistic and nearly all of my interests in life are either intelligence or creativity driven. I love reading and have wanted to be an author almost my entire life. I've been working on a few stories for several years, but they've had to be put on the backburner, since it's not a feasable or stable job. One day, though, I do really want to publish at least one. I HATE really big changes (like moving and making new friends- I'm not a people person) but I adapt really well to change and usually grow to like it. And if I don't have small changes in my life, I go a little crazy ( I have to rearrange my CD shelf or bookshelf often to keep it interesting). So yeah, I think that's about it...

7) List seven wishes

I'm thinking that these should be illogical/ genie wishes. So that's what I'm going to do.

-I wish that there was a cure for celiac disease. It's when you're gluten intolerant. My mom's had it since I was 3, and it would be nice for her to eat whatever she wants, whenever she wants it, without having to worry about it.

-That my family had never moved to the town we live in now. We moved here for a job, and since I've been gone to college, I'm spending the entire summer (including my birthday) without any friends :(

-That my dad had a stable job back in Dallas. Which is kinda a supplement to the last one.

-That there was a foolproof cure to acne. Ever since jr. high, I've had pretty bad acne, and nothing I've ever used has been helpful, and I can't use anything that uses salicylic acid because my face drys up immediately.

-That I was a lot better at playing the viola. As a music major, I should be able to play better than I do, even though I don't want to go into performance. 

-That I would never get nervous. Because that always messes up my viola performances. Always.

-That I could make money doing this rather than working in a store. Don't get me wrong, I'm excited (and nervous) about starting my new job, but it would be so nice to earn money from blogging.

8) What is your go-to song?

I guess it depends on the situation. When I'm trying to fall asleep, I always listen to the Parachute album 'Losing Sleep' (I honestly JUST realized how ironic that is) and I always start it on the song Ghost. It's kinda funny, the first time I used that cd, it was on shuffle and it started on Ghost and I fell asleep immediately, and the next time I used it, it started on a different song and I couldn't fall asleep. So I started the shuffle on Ghost and I fell asleep. So it's almost a superstition/luck thing. ANYWAY, I have go-to summer songs (The Beach- All Time Low, Barefoot Blue Jean Night- Jake Owen), go-to jam songs, go-to chill songs, etc. 

9) What is your favorite season and why?

Summer! And not just because there's no school. Although that's a big factor. I'm a June baby, so summer means birthday. It also means warm weather, which I LOVE. I hate the cold. SO MUCH. Currently, I'm not a big fan of being out of school because I'm not with my friends, but I'll live. 

10) What is your favorite movie?

Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure. In case you didn't know, it's a 1989 movie (I love 80's movies SO MUCH) about 2 guys who are besties and total idiots. They're about to fail history and flunk out of school, and if they do, Ted gets sent to military school and they can never start their band. In the future, their music has caused complete peace and happiness, so a guy named Rufus is sent back in time with a time machine to help the guys pass their final history report. It's completely stupid humor and I absolutely love it (Favorite quote- Teacher: "Ted, who was Joan of Arc?" Ted: "Uhhh... Noah's wife?"). Fun fact, this movie is also where the "conspiracy Keanu" meme comes from. And I can even tell you the exact moment it's a screenshot of. Bill and Ted are in England, trying to escape knights who are chasing them. Bill is trying to get the time machine to work, and Ted sees that the knights are closing in on them.

11) What is your dream vacation?

Going to Orlando and getting Disney and Universal all to myself. BEST. VACATION. EVER.

12) List six things you love about yourself.

- I really love that I don't have to try super hard to do well at school, even now in college. I understand things really quickly.

- I love my taste in music. It seems really obvious, but I just think I have the most perfect music taste ever. 

-I love that I'm different. I don't want to be like everyone else.

- I love that I've made the decision not to drink, because if I wasn't so resolute in my decision, there have been way too many opportunities to be pulled into that.

- I love my eyes. They're brown, but they're a goldeny brown and I have a freckle in my right eye. So far, I've only met one other person who has a freckle in their eye, and she happens to have the same color eyes as me, and have it in the exact same place. And she also happens to be my best friend. :)

- I love my birthmark. I've never seen it, because it's on the back of my neck, but it's shaped like a pawprint and it runs in my family.

13) What do you look for in a relationship?

I think at this point, I have a bit of a better idea what I want. My last relationship was a year and a half, but it ended really badly and we never talk now. I've realized that dating someone as stubborn as myself is a bad idea. I also know that I couldn't date anyone controlling because I'm pretty independent and don't like being told what to do. I've also realized in the past few months that my ex didn't really respect me as much as I thought. I would set boundaries and he would break them. He'd apologize and feel bad, but he still broke them, and it happened more often than most accidents. So respect for me and my boundaries is a big one. The same religious beliefs is also a big thing because religion is a big part of my life and relates to most things that I do, so if a guy didn't at least respect (aha that word again) my beliefs behind my actions, it would be a no-go.

On a more lighthearted note, I like funny and sweet guys. And though my celebrity crushes all kinda have a similar punk look (Alex Gaskarth, Dan Howell, Kellin Quinn, etc), in my real everyday life, I don't really have a 'type'. If you look at all the guys I've dated, they have more in common as far as personality than looks. 

14) What is your favorite book?

My favorite book series is Harry Potter. But as far as stand-alone books, I have 3 favorites. 

-And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie

-Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher

-All-American Girl by Meg Cabot

15) Do you want to have kids in the future?

Quite honestly, no. I don't really like kids. I'm sorry, but I don't see how babies are cute. I just don't. Kids are annoying. And they're incredibly painful to give birth to. They're expensive, and I just don't think I want to bring a child that I wouldn't even want into this messed up world. Having said that, if I ended up actually having a child, I would try my best to take care of him/her and be a good mom. But I just don't want to go down that road. 

16) Name three people who inspire you.

Tom Fletcher- he's an amazing musician and I just love him. 

Dan Levitin- He's a rock musician/producer turned cognitive psychologist and I have a lot in common with him as far as what I want to study.

Hunter Hayes- When he was 19, he released a CD. On that CD, he wrote/co-wrote every single song, played every single instrument on every song, did all vocals, and co-produced the CD. And he's been playing instruments and writing music pretty much since he was born. I'm just insanely impressed by his talent.

17) What is your favorite quote?

A single favorite quote? What about a saying? "Que sera, sera" What will be, will be.

18) Life experiences or materialistic things?

Life experiences, of course.

19) Favorite lyric from a song?

This is a very hard question to answer because I listen to way too much music.

"Manage me, I'm a mess. Turn a page, I'm a book, half unread.... maybe it's not my weekend, but it's gonna be my year, and I'm so sick of watching while the minutes pass as I go nowhere, and this is my reaction to everything I fear, 'cause I've been going crazy I don't wanna waste another minute here"

20) Tell a story of a life-changing experience.

Hmm... I hate to be a party pooper, but I really can't think of any life-changing experiences I've had...

21) Have a follower ask you a question about anything and answer truthfully.

Erm... That's difficult because I'm not on tumblr, so I just found a random question generator.

"What is your favorite drink?"

Dr. Pepper. I'm kinda an addict. You think that's an exaggeration, but it really isn't :/