New York Lovin'

Recently I jetted off to The City That Never Sleeps with my sister Sarah for a little holiday and enjoyed every single minute of it. Here's a summary of our travels and what we got up to.

Friday

We flew into the city on Virgin Atlantic Premium Economy, and it's a service that I would definitely recommend. The staff could not be more helpful and lovely, which is why Virgin is an amazing airline to fly with. Once in the city, we checked our hotel which is smack bang in the middle of Times Square - I'm not even kidding. Walk out the door and you're caught in the hustle and bustle of the most popular tourist area in the world. 

We then found the Times Square Diner, a place I would go to for lunch again in a heartbeat as it's not too far away from all the action, but isn't within the tourist trap of Times Square prices. We then went for a walk around the area as it was a lovely day, a few pictures of which you can have a look at below. 

Saturday

Our first proper day in New York meant the start of the bus tours, and we went with Big Bus Tours (which are great) and headed downtown. Before that though, it was a visit to Kellogg's NYC where you can make your own breakfast with your favourite Kellogg's cereal, a choice of milk and toppings including marshmallows and green tea powder to name a few. When you've made your order, you get a little buzzer thing and it can be collected from a little locker (demonstrated in the pictures below). Pretty cool - the way breakfast should be served everywhere.

We went on the Downtown tour and I took lots of pictures as you can imagine, and we stopped at the 9/11 Memorial and Museum as it was going to be shut on the Sunday for the 15th anniversary. 

I was only 6 in 2001 so don't remember anything of the attacks, but it was a very sombre atmosphere around the museum as everyone was taking in the horror of what happened almost 15 years prior. It was very harrowing but also very eye-opening. Some of the pictures of what's in the museum are below, it may be upsetting for some.

These are the missing posters of those who didn't return home on 9/11 - this made me cry the most!

The white roses by each name are celebrating the person's birthday

The Downtown tour continued after the 9/11 memorial with seeing the Flatiron Building, a visit to Wall Street and Chinatown, as well as the expensive district of Soho.

The photo above is of Trump International Tower, something the guides didn't talk too much about weirdly enough. What I love about New York is how tall the skyscrapers are; they make you feel so small and it's such a special feeling. This is why it's one of my favourite cities in the World.

Sunday

Sunday first entailed watching the 9/11 fifteen-year anniversary memorial on TV and going to get breakfast the Kellogg's cafe again (Sarah loves that place!). We decided to go on the Uptown and Night tours on Sunday, especially as they had the tribute of light where the Twin Towers once stood that you could see from many places around the city. 

On the Uptown tour we visited Central Park and Strawberry Fields, the pictures of which you'll see below. It's so vast and there's so much to see and do in Central Park, as well as checking out where John Lennon was famously shot by Mark Chapman (it's not much, just a step). 

That evening Sarah & I went our separate ways for a bit and I headed to the South Seaport to get a Hornblower Ferry trip around the Brooklyn Bridge, next to the Statue of Liberty and with great views of Jersey and the highline - the views were STUNNING and I took lots of pictures (including the one at the top of this post).

It's Lady Liberty :)

The night tour was great too, with the Statue of Light being a great and symbolic thing to see. I didn't get many pictures of it as I couldn't get my camera to focus properly, so I'm not going to put any of my bad photography on here. 

Monday

Monday was one of the more chilled-out days of our trip. I had a meeting in the morning which went really well and then we went for a spot of shopping (I was happy but my bank balance wasn't). The evening meant heading over to Brooklyn for a New York Yankees game, which was awesome. The atmosphere was buzzing and even though the Yankees lost and I don't know a lot about baseball, it was a great experience. 

Tuesday

Tuesday was our last full day in the city, even though we didn't actually spend most of it there. Sarah was lucky enough to receive tickets to the taping of Steve Wilkos (google it) and we got to see Grand Central Station as we got on the train to Stamford, Connecticut to see the show. Our episode is airing soon, I'm so excited to see if I'm on the telly! 

Wednesday was a sad day, as we had to say goodbye to the great city of New York. Both Sarah & I had such a great time and I'm sure we'll be back soon.

Follow me on Twitter to keep up with what I'm up to and follow Sarah too if you would like. 

A K Jones

xx

Featured Artist - Hunter & The Bear

For a rock band with only a couple of singles under their belt, touring with Eric Clapton and Van Morrison is a massive deal and is definitely worthy of note, showing that Hunter & The Bear's star is on the rise with their melodic rock anthems.

They've just dropped the video for new single 'Oh Daisy' and it's a gem, with the video narrative having a happy ending, complete with a stuffed bear walking around London and holding flowers. It's  visualised to such a dynamic and beat-centric song, with Will's raspy vocals shining through and being the perfect accompaniment to the entire production. You'll be seeing this in one of my 'What I've Listened To This Month' posts soon enough, so keep your eyes peeled.

They're touring throughout Europe and the UK in the next few weeks, ahead of their debut album being released in 2017 (view the dates HERE) - go and see them, they'll be an act to see while you can.

Follow Hunter & The Bear on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to see what they're up to. Check out the video for 'Oh Daisy', embedded below. Don't forget to follow me on Instagram to see my latest posts as soon as they're published.

Happy Listening!

A K Jones

xx

One Simple & Free Tool To Organise Your Blog

We all like free things right? Here's a free tool for organising your blog content that works and helps you keep on top of what you're writing and whether you've done it or not. I love this specific programme, and it's built into most computers. It is...

Microsoft Excel.

You may not have been expecting me to say that, but believe me it's true. After years of using calendars and to-do-lists to no avail, I called on Excel (or Numbers if you use a Mac) to help organise my content and help me know where I am if there's a lot of posts to write. I also use it to create a checklist of social media to promote my posts on, so then I can tick it off that I've done it and put my mind at ease that all my posts are tweeted, pinned and written about where they should be.

I'll show you my structure of how I organise it, and it really does help.

I have an Excel spreadsheet set up in the following ways (as seen in the pictures above) with the columns listing a checklist if you like of what to do with the post - so whether it's been written, drafted, scheduled or posted.

When it's posted, there's a separate social media chart for Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat and Pinterest to keep up with what social media platforms you have and haven't posted on. It's great to use every day and see where you're at, with the ability to add more posts to your lists and schedule.

I also used a colour key with blue showing whether I had started the task, red showing that I hadn't, and green to show that it's been completed. It feels so satisfying to be able to colour that particular assignment and social media post green symbolising that you've done it all and your day's work is done.

I hope you can take this tip on board and use it to your advantage. Tweet me and let me know if you're going to adopt this way of scheduling your posts, as it's free and simple to use.

Happy Listening!

A K Jones

xx

What I've Been Listening To This Month | August

I'm sorry that this post is so late, but I've been on holiday and haven't been able to blog. I haven't listened to too much this month but I've had the songs on my playlist on repeat. What I've been listening to this month includes new songs from The Chainsmokers and That Poppy as well as favourites from Angel Haze, Green Day and even the Blood Brothers soundtrack. Here's my tracklist below, take a look and see if you can find a new favourite.

Tracklist:

1. A Tribe Called Red - Angel Haze
2. Kill The DJ - Green Day
3. All The Things She Said - t.A.T.u
4. Don't Let Me Down - The Chainsmokers ft. Daya
5. Laura - Scissor Sisters
6. Mary - Scissors Sisters
7. Give Me Novacaine - Green Day
8. Joanna - Sonic Boom Six
9. Lowlife - That Poppy
10. Bright New Day - Blood Brothers Soundtrack
11. Somebody to Love - Boogie Pimps
12. London Calling - The Clash

Listen to the songs on my Spotify playlist which is embedded below, and follow me on Spotify to see what added to next month's playlist before anyone else.

Happy Listening!

A K Jones

xx

FiiO Alpen 2 E17K Portable Amp Review

About a month ago I was in London for hi-fi conference CanJam (read about it here) and was really impressed with FiiO's Alpen 2 E17K Amp. I got in contact with the wonderful Oscar whom I met at the conference and he sent me an E17K for review. Here's my thoughts on it.

If you're unclear what a portable amp (DAC) is, it's a little device that helps amplify the sound of your music/gaming by changing the signal, being a digital-to-analogue converter and gives you a new dimension to your music or videos. The Alpen 2 is a great DAC to start off with as it's rather low-end, but is still of great quality.

It works by connecting to your headphones (which you can see in the picture above) and then connecting the DAC to your phone via the cables they provide. The connection source can be changed with the simple press of a button and can connect to the DAC via AUX, USB or COX, so is suitable for any type of hardware you may have.

The settings are changed within the menus, where you can set the bass volume as well as the treble and which ear is favourable for music to be played out of, so you can change it to either just the left or right ear if you need to. The actual DAC itself and all of its controls are really easy to use and are easily accessible.

The only small issues I have with it are as follows, with the first being that there aren't really instructions of how to connect it to the device you're using - it's as if they said "it's out of the box, get on with it", unless I missed the instructions (which is a fair possibility). It seemed pretty simple when I tried to set it up but being new to the world of amps I didn't have a clue and had to direct myself to YouTube to try and get it working. After pressing everything, the music finally appeared out of my headphones and has been fine since.

Also the amp only works through over-ear headphones so won't work with earbuds, so invest in a good pair if you want good sound quality anyway, but enhanced massively by the amp. There's also rubber bands that FiiO recommend to stick the amp and phone back-to-back, but that really isn't possible with the iPhone 6S' amp being at the bottom of the phone - you don't really need them anyway, mine works just fine without.

Overall the amp works great and will certainly enhance your favourite music to a new level that you won't be able to live without - you'll be carrying your amp everywhere to be able to reach the same sound quality that you can't with just headphones. For a lower-end amp, it's pretty damn awesome.

Check out the amp at AV Shop in the UK here, as well as checking out FiiO's website for more details of their products. Follow FiiO on Twitter and like their page on Facebook to see what they're up to. Don't forget to follow me on Instagram to see my latest post before anybody else.

KT Tunstall - KIN (2016)

Name an award both on British soil and stateside and KT Tunstall has won it - Grammy, BRITs and even a Novello Award, won due to her critically-acclaimed debut Eye To The Telescope, released over a decade ago.

Tunstall has been shying from the limelight and households for recent years as she's been creating movie scores as part of Sundance's Elite Composer Lab. But something was burning inside her to be back on stage and create another album - that's where KIN comes in.

Tunstall comes back rocking, with 'Hard Girls' demonstrating that she's taken another route from her Pop days of 2004. The song in its entirety hits you at 100mph and although you'll be across the other side of the room from all the energy, you'll want to hit the repeat button as fast as you say "KT Tunstall". It's a great introduction to a comeback album and will certainly secure her place in the charts this year.

KIN isn't just a solo effort as it features a duet between Tunstall and James Bay, named 'Two Way' and is a beautiful and captivating rock ballad, something that fits both their styles effortlessly. Even people who don't like James Bay will be leaning more towards him after hearing this song, and that's mostly due to their perfect melodies and immaculate songwriting.

Other songs of note include title track KIN, a sweet acoustic composition with the rhythm slowly tugging at your heartstrings, with love-struck lyrics backing that up. 'Evil Eye' is a nod to the Pop ways of the past, sounding a bit like her number one single 'Suddenly I See' but this feels a lot more refined and as if she's in her element as a songwriter.

KIN to many will be the defining album of Tunstall's career and show her maturity as a Rock artist - she certainly deserves to be a part of that genre. Buy or listen to at least one of these songs and you'll want to buy more to hear more of Tunstall's genius.

Like what you're reading? Then check out KIN on iTunes, Spotify and Amazon (UK | US). Also follow KT Tunstall on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to check out what she's up to. Don't forget to follow me on Instagram to see what I'm posting as soon as I click publish (I'm also going to NYC this week and will be adding to my story with what I'm up to).

Happy Listening!

A K Jones

xx

Featured Artist - BB Diamond

Pop singer BB Diamond has already had two popular radio singles 'Instinct' and 'Feeling', picked up by Radio 1 Xtra, KISS FM and Capital to name a few. She's created the perfect Pop song again with new single 'Praying'.

The soul/pop/dance single from Diamond is set to be yet another hit and can give Nicole Scherzinger a run for her money. She's also got huge opportunities coming up as she was previously a backing singer for some of the world's biggest artists and had a support slot on Jess Glynne's 2015 tour. I hope she's approached with the recognition she deserves and is going to be supported by me and a lot of other new fans every step of the way. 

Check out her video for 'Praying' (embedded below) and her music on Spotify, iTunes and Amazon (UK | US). Follow her on Twitter to see what she's up to. Follow me on Instagram to see updates about my newest posts as they've been published.

Happy Listening!

A K Jones

xx

Mark Bowden Stress Relief Hypnotherapy - 4-week Round Up

In case you missed it, I reviewed Mark Bowden's Stress Relief Hypnotherapy programme after two weeks of using it (view it here). Now it's time for the 4-week round up of how the programme went and whether I'm going to keep using it.

In these last two weeks, I've used it quite a lot as there have been some stresses about work and different things, so needed it to help. I have to say that the comment I made in my last post that "every time I take you into trance, you'll fall even deeper" was so true that I started to merge the words that he was saying in the recording with what people have said to me that I was thinking about, which is such a strange experience but you have to do it, even if just the once. I said in my last post that I would give you a quick overview of the daytime recording, as I hadn't tried that - I don't know why I hadn't earlier.

I can't recommend Bowden's programmes enough, as there really is a plethora of hypnotherapies to choose from, so there's something for everyone. I also tried the 10 Minute Beach Relaxation Hypnotherapy (which is free by the way, and you can try it here) and that was awesome, as it makes you imagine that you're at the beach, controls your breathing and somehow alters your mind to make you believe that you're really relaxed and by the sea.

So here's my 4-week summary: invest in some de-stressing hypnotherapy by Mark Bowden, it will certainly make you see things more positively and make you think about stressful situations differently, which is what the programme aims to do. I hope you enjoy and get as much out of it as I did.

You can check out Mark Bowden's Hypnotherapy on his website and follow him on Facebook to see what he's doing. Don't forget to follow me on Instagram or subscribe to email updates (in the sidebar) to never miss a post from me.

Happy Listening!

A K Jones

xx

Ward Thomas - Cartwheels (2016)*

Ward Thomas have been all over the radio waves recently, as the sisters' country-pop fused release Cartwheels has been highly-anticipated. Their debut From Where We Stand won Album of The Year at the British Country Music Awards and if Cartwheels is anything to go by, then they certainly deserve all their success.

These twins have taken Nashville by storm and this is no more in evidence than with opener 'Carry You Home', a song Carrie Underwood might have released on Blown Away, but with more reassuring and optimistic vocals, matching the message that they'll "be there when it all goes wrong" - I'd certainly give them a call, like the song says to do.

'Material' has more of the bones of a modern day country song - slow percussion and then a somewhat explosive chorus with both girls in perfect harmony. It'll be all over the Country radio stations and might even be a single, even so I'd choose it over Taylor Swift's "country" sound anyday. 'Safe' is where they really show off their prowess and singing ability, as just a guitar backs up their flawless vocals and the message of the song is quite heavy as they chant "you're not what to happened to you", but is reflected with the upmost respect and almost concern, as if they're your friends and are looking out for you.

Cartwheels is going to big in the Country world and I hope it stretches beyond that. It's a joy to listen, with excitement beaming across my face as one of the songs pops into my headphones when I shuffle my iTunes. Well done ladies, you've done yourselves proud there with an absolute corker of an album.

If you like the sound of what I'm hearing, then check out Cartwheels on iTunes, Spotify and Amazon (UK | US). Follow Ward Thomas on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to see what they're up to, as well as checking out their tour dates. Follow me on Twitter for more updates from me.

Happy Listening!

A K Jones

xx

*PR samples were sent. All opinions are my own.