Advertisement

24 November 2016

Busted - Night Driver (2016)

After a successful revival Pigs Can Fly tour last year, British Pop group Busted are releasing Night Driver, their first record since A Present For Everyone all the way back in 2003.


With age comes wisdom, and more grown-up music. Their use of expletives in songs such as 'Coming Home' and 'Thinking Of You' show that they're not just a tween band anymore, attracting both those who don't know who Busted are, and those who want to relive their teen days. Lead singer Charlie Simpson's vocals have certainly roughened up since their last release as he's had many practice in bands and as a soloist, giving him a chance to experiment with what works best.

One thing that's missing from this comeback record is some harsh guitar, most notable in songs like 'Crash The Wedding' from the old days. Without this they have a pure Pop sound and that's a shame as I think we would all love to rock out to a new Busted song at least once, but it's just not possible. Having said that, the Pop that they have produced is delightful and might sway some new listeners to become fans of Busted. 

They've definitely heard the trends of music right now, tapping into where it's headed for the future - 'On What You're On' being an example of this, a song with a little auto-tune thrown for good measure, a funk-filled beat and some jazz undertones make this a song that belongs on the radio and in the Disco room at Oceana, which I would agree isn't a bad thing. 

Title track 'Night Driver' has the menacing drum beat that's so clearly worked for many other artists, and will probably do so for these guys - seriously, it's so addictive to tap your feet to. The chanting of "midnight driver/midnight driver" and repetitive chorus is why these guys will be branded as Pop musicians from now until forever more, with the images of air-jumping being taken completely out of the picture.

Busted have definitely shown that they can conform themselves to be part of today's generation of music, but Night Driver is just missing that little spark of Rock and the ability to jump about with air guitars to their music that everyone so desperately misses. 

You can buy Night Driver on iTunes, Amazon (UK | US) and stream it on Spotify for free. Busted are about to embark on their 2017 tour, tickets for which can be bought here. Follow Busted on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to see their snaps from the road. Don't forget to follow me on Twitter and Facebook so you never miss a post.

Happy Listening!

A K Jones
xx

22 November 2016

Luisa Spagnoli Store Launch

A couple of Thursdays ago I was lucky enough to be invited as a VIP to Luisa Spagnoli's flagship store launch event in Piccadilly Circus, London. The Italian fashion brand has been featured in lots of different Fashion Weeks and in the Italian version of magazines like GRAZIA, DIVA and Vanity Fair to name but a few.


If you didn't know about Spagnoli's amazing collection of clothes, then you need to go and check it out whatever you can. Every piece looks as if it belongs on the catwalk and is so well made and you can buy it on the website or in any of their stores. Here's pictures below of just some of the amazing items on offer their London Piccadilly store. 











All of the collections within the store are colour coded, so there's a collection to suit every season, occasion and mood.










This was one of my favourite pieces of the entire collection in the shop, feels so comfortable and would look perfect with anything!

Every corner of the store's decor is the perfect setting for any Instagram pictures, with the tables and rails plated in gold and what made the opening even cooler was the tunes blasting from the DJ decks, lightening up the atmosphere and making it less awkward between small talk and sips of champagne (I certainly had plenty of those!).





I couldn't resist having a few glasses of bubbly!
It was so great seeing what the brand and launch had to offer in the way of new fashion. If there's a new brand you want to check out, then this would be one of them. They're bringing Italian fashion to London, in the classiest and most accessible way possible, so definitely go and see what they've got to offer.

Check out Luisa Spagnoli, either online or in stores around the world. Thank you to Luisa Spagnoli and Black Diamond Luxury PR for inviting to this event as a VIP, I had a great time. My Facebook page is crammed full of my latest posts, so go over there and see what I'm up to.

Happy Listening!

A K Jones
xx



























Taco Bell Southampton Opening Party | #LIVEMAS

Tonight for me meant one thing - TACO BELL IN SOUTHAMPTON. The American food chain has actually had stores in the UK for a few years, but this Southampton Store is the first down South. It's officially opening on Wednesday, but I was invited to the VIP party to try some food and have a mooch around the store before it opened.


Southampton's Taco Bell store is in a perfect location just along from Above Bar Street in the Hanover Buildings, so ideal for anyone looking for their taco fix. The actual restaurant itself is quite spacious, with the menu being laid out on big screens, like those in McDonalds and Burger King.



For the store opening, everyone was lovingly given a few free meals and drinks, including free refills. There was also a photo booth (which won't be there after opening sadly) that was so much fun. After arriving on my own, I got chatting to a few lovely ladies from the Soton Bloggers group and sat on a table with all the bloggers, all of us taking pictures and checking our social media accounts.

We all decided to go into the photo booth together and took a few cute pictures, it was definitely the highlight of my night. Whilst we were all chatting, food was coming around and we were being offered lots of meals that will be served at Taco Bell including quesadillas, burritos and a Crunchwrap (google it). Here's some pictures of the appetising food below (if you're hungry and don't want to be tempted to eat bad food, stop reading now!)






I would have to say the Chicken Cheese Quesadillas were the best savoury item on the menu, with the burrito being too filling. But the real star of Taco Bell for me was the KitKat Chocodilla, a quesadilla which contained warm melting KitKats, it was actually amazing and if I could eat it every day, I would.

Another thing I need to mention is how well organised this event was. The Taco Bell staff and the PR company who look after them are all so lovely, with the staff being so attentive to bring out food just at the right time and made sure to cover every table that hadn't been replenished in a while, but not so much that it was overwhelming. The exit from the store and a great event meant receiving a goodie bag, complete with a notebook, pen and even a free £5 voucher on your next shop there, I'll definitely be going back!

All in all I had a great time at the event and it was great to meet so many lovely people and make some new blogger friends. Are you going to visit Taco Bell in Southampton when it opens on Wednesday? Let me know.

Follow Taco Bell UK on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to see their updates. See what I'm up to on my Instagram and Facebook pages. 

Happy Listening! (Or eating in this case 😝)

A K Jones
xx

18 November 2016

Featured Artist - Katelyn Tarver

Sarcastic, girl-power songs are on the rise these days, especially in the Pop genre. Katelyn Tarver has her debut EP coming out early next year, demonstrating just this - especially with her latest single 'Hate To Tell You'.


Tarver adds to the girl-power anthems brilliantly with this single as she is dismissing the advances of someone of the opposite sex trying to make a move and create an opportunity that just isn't there. The song itself is very Taylor Swift-esque, with her sarcastic side coming through in what is her third single.

She gained support from BURNS who co-wrote the song with her, symbolising a definite breath of fresh air from the last few months of the same artists dominating the charts and radio waves. She's up there with the best of them and certainly one to watch for next year. She's playing a show at Communion Night @ Rockwood Music Hall, NYC on 6th December - if you can, please go and see her perform, you won't regret it! See more info here.

Listen to her current singles on SoundCloud here. Watch the video for 'Weekend Millionaires' here and listen to the audio of 'Hate To Tell You' on her YouTube channel here. Follow Katelyn on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to keep up with her music releases. Follow me on Instagram to see my latest posts as soon as they're published.

Happy Listening!

A K Jones
xx

17 November 2016

WIN a year's supply of tacos at Taco Bell Southampton! 🌮

In preparation for the opening of Taco Bell's first South Coast store in Southampton, UK, they're giving people a chance to win a year's supply of tacos and an invitation to the VIP Launch Party on Monday 21st October.


What do you have to do to win this great prize? Find the #GoldenTaco hiding somewhere in the city and whoever does will win these fantastic gifts. I can't give you any clues I'm afraid, so get your search on. Who else is excited for the Taco Bell opening? I certainly am!

Follow Taco Bell UK on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to see any updates. Follow me on Facebook and Twitter to see my posts as soon as they're published. 

Good luck finding that #GoldenTaco!

A K Jones
xx



10 November 2016

Featured Artist - Weslynn

Arizona State University is teaming with creative forces to be reckoned with and in 2013 three of those students joined together to create Indie Pop band Weslynn. After a typical touring circuit of their home city, they added another member to complete the setup and extended their outreach to feature the rest of the World.


Similar to Troye Sivan and One Direction, their EP BLACK + CHAMPAGNE is packed full of feel-good anthems, something to pick us all up from the horror that has been 2016. Single 'Strange Feelings' can be related to by anyone of almost any age who's been through a breakup and has certainly reached them, as the video currently has nearly 30,000 views on their Facebook page, definitely an achievement.

Another song of note is 'New York Minute', a personal favourite of mine. It's better than anything the Pop-packaged artists could ever make and this song (in fact, the whole EP) is so catchy, with retro pick-me-up vibes being laid out from the start. These guys are definitely a Pop band to follow and look out for.

Listen to BLACK + CHAMPAGNE on Spotify, buy it on iTunes and watch the great video for 'Strange Feelings' here. Follow them on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube to see what they're up to. Like my Facebook page to see my posts as soon as they're published.

Happy Listening!

A K Jones
xx

© Hooked On The Music | All rights reserved.
BLOG TEMPLATE HANDCRAFTED BY pipdig