Track By Track: Badlands - Halsey

Note: Out of Time is not responsible for any sickness from exposure to fangirling. If symptoms occurs, we highly recommend an immediate rush to your family doctor or in extreme cases, the ICU. Nova possesses enough fangirlishness to maim a small mammal. You have been warned.

Artist: Halsey
Album: Badlands
Release Date: August 28, 2015
Record Label: Astralwerks
iTunes

Track Listing [links to audio on YouTube]

Castle || Hold Me Down || New Americana || Drive || Hurricane || Roman Holiday || Ghost || Colors [+ pt. 2] || Strange Love || Coming Down || Haunting || Gasoline || Control || Young God || I Walk The Line

I first heard of Halsey when I was listening to a playlist on 8tracks. I was immediately taken by the lines in Hurricane, "don't belong to no city; don't belong to no man" and so, I sought to find more music. Back then, it was January and she hadn't released anything except the Room 93 EP. It was a concept album about being stuck in a hotelroom and the loneliness that comes with it.

Yo, Halsey is amazing.

Now that Badlands is out, I figured I would do commentary for each track. Badlands is about a state of mind where a person is feeling empty and ruined - like the Badlands. The entire sound of the album jumps around different genres, tied by a string of catchy pop vibes. I recommend listening to the songs either before reading or while. Most, if not all, of these opinions are good and gushing so no hate at all! I love Halsey's music.

The first track, Castle, is like the Throne of Glass song. It has a very serious and creepy vibe. Some artists order their tracks on the idea of "first impressions" being the reflection of the entire album. To me, Castle isn't a reflection of the album - Castle is a small part of a grand scale. I'm actually not sure about the melody since it's not really the jamming kind of song but it really does make me think. Also same with Control. Control isn't the kind of song I usually listen to because it's very dark with a "creepy vibe" but also very wise.

New Americana, Ghost and Hurricane are songs that were released way before the album was out. So to me, to hear them on the album wasn't a surprise. New Americana on Badlands is not the first version of the song. On my iTunes, I have both versions. The original version is a lot more low key while the Badlands version has a lot of a louder instrumental. I love both equally. Ghost is that song that is too good and too short. Seriously! It's only like two and a half minutes long. You already know how I feel about the genius that is Hurricane.

Halsey and her [ex] boyfriend duet in Drive and it is my soul. Remember Alex and Sierra? Yeah, they're also my goals. Drive is the kind of song that reminds me of freedom of the open road. Paired with Lana Del Rey's Ride, it's perfect for a roadtrip.

Most of the album talks about pretty dark topics but I really like the refresher of Roman Holiday. It's a track that is so filled with hope and making mistakes and in essence, just being a teenager. Halsey captures the moment perfectly.

Colors is the song I was looking for a studio version to. The way Halsey used colors and imagery in this song was stunning. It's about how someone went from Blue to Grey. I see it as how someone went from sinking to sunk. It's beautiful.

Coming Down is so chill. I heard a version of it leaked but it wasn't the official. For one thing, the version I heard was too fast and only featured the background guitar [it didn't have backup vocals and other effects.] Coming Down is the kind of song I nod my head to slowly while awkward dancing. The real version is comforting and catchy while also being very easy to listen to.

Strange Love is sassy as hell. It's like, "I don't have to fucking tell you anything!" in that voice. I even had a laugh when I was like, "this is Taylor Swift's song whenever people ask who her songs are about." I'm sorry, I'm cracking myself up. I also pair it with Haunting because to me, Haunting is about a person and Strange Love is about how Halsey doesn't want to talk about who it is.

My favorite songs are Gasoline and Young God for two different reasons. Gasoline features some amazing lyrics. I think the entire song is so well done, lyrically, but the chorus is my favorite. I don't understand how music can make me feel this way but this: "you can't wake up this is not a dream // you're part of a machine, you are not a human being // with your face all made up, living on the screen // low on self esteem, so you run on gasoline"
 
It reminds me of Robot by Miley Cyrus [which I love!] It's also very heavy in terms of music making the message forceful and demanding to be heard but not creepy, like with Control. There's nothing wrong with creepy but the forceful approach worked very well.
Young God has amazing music. It was the song I was humming while writing this blog post and I didn't even realize. When it comes to melody, I can't explain the formula for a perfect song but Young God definitely had it.

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Album Love: Froot - Marina and the Diamonds

I'm thinking of doing album reviews more than song reviews because song reviews are boring. I enjoy talking about multiple tracks all in one shot.

Note: Out of Time is not responsible for any sickness from exposure to fangirling. If symptoms occurs, we highly recommend an immediate rush to your family doctor or in extreme cases, the ICU. Nova possesses enough fangirlishness to maim a small mammal, you have been warned.

Artist: (Queen) Marina and the Diamonds
Album: Froot
Release Date: March 16th, 2015
Record Label: Atlantic Records UK

Track Listing

1. Happy
2. Froot
3. I'm a Ruin
4. Blue
5. Forget
6. Gold
7. Can't Pin Me Down
8. Solitaire
9. Better Than That
10. Weeds
11. Savages
12. Immortal

Queen Marina has done it again, no surprise there! After the beauty that was Electra Heart, I wasn't sure if I would like Froot because it's got such a different sound. However, it's really grown on me and I cannot stop listening to it! And not to mention that this is her comeback from Electra Heart, which feels ages ago!

Something important to note is that this album is all Marina. She admits that Electra Heart was more of a character than her and Froot, well, it's just Marina without the makeup, without the wig and the heart under her eye. And we can definitely see than because the opening track, Happy, is accompanied by a video where Marina looks like this. Plus, Happy has such a self reflective theme to it and I can't help but admire how honest she is and how honest the whole album is.

When I first heard Froot, the title track, I wasn't sure about it. It has the kind of sound that isn't really my style. But then I heard it twice more and I was completely hooked. It's obvious what the song is about but the song is so addictive!

I'm a Ruin and Immortal [the last track] came out around the same time and they're in the same key which is why I had such a fun time mashing them up when I was playing around on the piano. Even though they've got different messages, their melodies are beautiful with enough drum to keep it steady but not dance-y. Plus, those high notes are KILLER!

There's one line in Blue that always gets me: gimme love, gimme dreams, gimme a good self esteem. [Also Blue has sort of the same theme as Red by Taylor Swift, omg. AND THE COLORS.]

Forget, while it doesn't have stunning lyrics [in my opinion] has a really strong melody and a great message. While other songs about her album are towards herself, Forget feels like she's speaking from experience to someone else.

Gold, Can't Pin Me Down and Solitaire are actually the songs that I like the least. Don't get me wrong. This album makes me want to scream and freak out but everyone has favorites! If I had to choose one song I like the least, it would be Can't Pin Me Down. I don't really like the melody.

Better Than That doesn't sound like ANYTHING I've ever heard about. It deals with a topic that's a little like Taylor Swift's, Better Than Revenge but with more of an impartial view. It's about a girl who gets around and how it was the boy who got hurt and I think this is so important because we rarely see the guys get hurt which is so wrong because I'm sure they do too! This is one of my top faves.

trust me, it'll make sense once you listen to the song

Weeds reminds me of Immortals. I feel like the two go together because the meaning of Weeds is that "it" keeps coming back and Immortals is about living forever - both meaning that whatever "it" is, is still there.

Savages. Holy crap. OMG. I CAN'T DEAL. In Electra Heart there was a song about feminism called Sex, Yeah [GO CHECK IT OUT IF YOU HAVEN'T] and that was the song for me. Savages is the song for me in Froot. Savages is basically about the human race and how even though we've got the technology we have, we're still messed up [ex. building bombs, cheating on each other, cheating, stealing.]
This song is every single social in one shot. I cannot deal with how much I need this song to be exposed to everyone. There's so much depth and intelligence - Marina, you are one intelligent musician.
My favorite line: "I'm not afraid of God. I am afraid of man."

me as f.

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Album Review: x - Ed Sheeran

Album: x [multiply]
Artist: Ed Sheeran
Release Date: June 20th, 2014
Record Label: Asylum Records
iTunes

Track Listing

1. One
2. I'm a Mess
3. Sing
4. Don't
5. Nina
6. Photograph
7. Bloodstream
8. Tenerife Sea
9. Runaway
10. The Man
11. Thinking Out Loud
12. Afire Love
13. Take It Back [Deluxe Edition Bonus Track]
14. Shirtsleeves [Deluxe Edition Bonus Track]
15. Even My Dad Does it Sometimes [Deluxe Edition Bonus Track]
16. I See Fire [Deluxe Edition Bonus Track]

I heard my first album from Ed pretty recently. I felt so annoyed that I hadn't thought to listen to him sooner. I mean, all my friends gush about how amazing he is and then there was me who was way too caught up in her All Time Low and Marianas Trench. It goes without saying, but I really enjoyed this album. It's really different from what I'm used to listening to but that's all part of its charm.

One - I got the sense that this is like a "friendzone" song and those songs always get to me. It has a really nice tune and it's very unplugged, which is awesome because I had an issue with a few of the other songs on the record.

I'm a Mess - Something really memorable about this one is the ornaments that were present throughout the song. If you don't take music or you're like "what the heck is an ornament?" let me explain. Whenever a singer sings a word but incorporates a series of notes. For example, in this song, when Ed sings "eyes" in the line "see the flames inside my eyes." Or the line after, when he sings "liar."

Sing - This is the first song I heard off the radio and honestly, I hated it. After listening to +, I was so confused. I remember Sheeran's style to be more guitar and Sing just had so much instrumental. Now that I listen to it, it's grown on me, but it still isn't one of my favorites.

Don't - Don't reminded me a lot of Sing for whatever reason. And also, I don't like Don't as much as other songs on the record. There are a lot of things about Don't that struck me; mainly how he does the "Taylor Swift" thing where he talks about his ex. However, what kind of irritated me is how when Ed does it, he gets no hate [i mean, half this record is about girls and I'm assuming they're different] but when Tay does it, she's labelled a bunch of ugly names. Regardless, this song didn't connect to me and I found it a little shallow.

Nina - This is my absolute FAVORITE song on the album. I love the blend of piano and guitar. I don't even know if I can explain it; there's just something so beautiful about how low key it is. There isn't heavy drums even though, it's more upbeat than One. I've listened to this one far too many times. The chorus isn't really that interesting word wise, but the emotion behind the simplicity is just gorgeous.

Photograph - This one should've been very inspiring to me but I was very neutral about it. The word choice was excellent but the tune lacked for me. It's a lot like the style from +, which I enjoyed but it reminded me of "If It Means a Lot To You" by A Day to Remember [and honestly, I prefer ADTR...]

Bloodstream - Bloodstream is unique and it's catchy. I like how the use of layering at the bridge and how the song really builds.

Tenerife Sea - This is just a really pretty song. It's like a happier version of One. I really like how it's almost completely unplugged. I also really love the harmonies; they're completely gorgeous.

Runaway - The interesting thing about Runaway is how much of a genre change it is to Tenerife Sea. Runaway is so much more pop, louder and more upbeat. Runaway struck me as one of the best songs on the album [more because it isn't about a relationship.] It's a meaningful song that talks about Ed's relationship with his father and how he loves his Dad but doesn't want to live with him.

The Man - The Man actually threw me off. It's almost a complete rap song. The beginning reminds me a little of Lorde's Bravado [which, I also love.] There are offbeats and when I tried to rap it, I failed miserably because flow is a little jerky at some points. The chorus is simple but it's catchy and sums up the idea of the song. There's also one point where he goes "I guess I lied in the hook because I still love you and I need you by my side if I could" and I found some kind of connection with how in the end, he admits to his denial. Also, when he goes "success is nothing if you have no one left to share it with."

Thinking Out Loud - I really didn't get the hype for this one. It was a little basic for me and it bored me. I didn't find it as romantic as some of his others; overall, not his best in my opinion.

Afire Love - A better love story than Thinking Out Loud, to be honest. It had so much meaning, especially because it was about his grandfather. I love that even though there's so much possibility for sadness, Ed uses the chorus as a memory of something beautiful his grandfather said, rather than something depressing.

Take it Back - It's a little like The Man, because it's totally rap. I really like listening to it because there's like no drums and it's got like no instrumental at all... but it WORKS! Also the line where he goes "I'm a singer that you'll never want to see shirtless," made me both laugh and give me mad respect for this guy.

Shirtsleeves - There's a bunch of water metaphors which is great. I actually skipped over this track the first time I listened to the album but it's a great track. It makes Ed sound like such a sweet guy, which is awesome. I really love Ed displays his sweet and boy-next-door character in this.

Even My Dad Does it Sometimes - I feel like this song says so much about life. It's one of those songs that I recommend to anyone going through a tough time. So much respect for Ed, honestly. He's basically saying that crying, feeling sad is all okay which is it. We're all meant to feel these things; we're human and that's why I connected to this song so much. Plus, he guitar solo is so beautiful. [Also, kind of upset that this is a bonus. It should be the feature.]

I See Fire - This is one of those songs that I imagine people sing post-war around a campfire. It's got a pretty dire meaning even though the tune is quite light.

Overall, x has a variety of styles in the songs. They're all pretty nice to listen to, though some affected me so much more than others. I had issues with some tracks, which I think is normal, but mainly, the record was a definite hit.

 

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Highlight of 2014: 1989 - A Love Story

Hold it! This is not and will never be just an album review. I'm counting down all the things I loved most about 2014 and 1989 is not just an album. Enjoy fangirling and squealing below.  

 

Note: Out of Time is not responsible for any symptoms of sickness from exposure to fangirling. If sickness occurs, we highly recommend immediate rush to the doctor or in extreme cases, the ICU. Nova possesses enough fangirlishness to maim a small mammal, you have been warned.

Artist: (Queen) Taylor Swift
Album: 1989 (aka bae)
Release Date: October 27th, 2014
Record Label: Big Machine Records

Track List:

1. Welcome to New York
2. Blank Space
3. Style
4. Out of the Woods
5. All You Had To Do Was Stay
6. Shake it Off
7. I Wish You Would
8. Bad Blood
9. Wildest Dreams
10. How You Get the Girl
11. This Love
12. I Know Places
13. Clean
14. Wonderland
15. You Are in Love
16. New Romantics

"OH MY GOD OH MY GOD ONE CANNOT COMPREHEND HOW MUCH I LOVE TAYLOR SWIFT. AND I AM ONE OF THE SADDEST FANGIRLS EVER BECAUSE I DON'T BUY MERCH AND I DON'T GO TO SHOWS BUT SCREW THE HATERS, TAYLOR IS MY FAVE." - Thoughts from Nova's mind.

me whenever I hear Tay
on the radio.

Do I even need to go track by track? Every single track has something about it that makes it memorable. I don't know what it is about this album, but ever since it came out, I've just been sickeningly happy. And I'm completely loving it. NO RAGRETS.

Welcome to New York is like my dream because I'm still too young for BEA but whatever. Blank Space is such a good song and HOLY CRAPOLA SEAN O'PRY IN THE VIDEO *FANS SELF*. Style just has a really catchy tune and I love the speaking parts. Out of the Woods? I can only take it in small doses, yeah, it's that song in the album. The one I don't really like. All You Had to Do Was Stay/I Wish You Would are kind of similar to me so LOVEEEEE. Shake it Off is so simple because it makes me feel good about myself. Also, I've found myself saying "hella" more than I should. Oops.

Then there's Bad Blood with a hella amount of sass (see, I did it!) I love the acapella
beginning and yeah, haters, Taylor CAN sing. Wildest Dreams is one of my
favorites on the record. HOLY SHIZZLES it gives me so much feeling.
It pretty much represents all those guilty pleasure Bad Boy books I read because all I want for christmas is (cocky) BAD BOY (or boy in general. I'm not picky.)
<--- not really a bad boy, but he's casted as the bad boy in a lot of Wattpad stories, so I think that counts. Also, the look. AHHHHHHHHHHH.

How You Get the Girl is basically Taylor taking all the cutest contemporaries and pressing puree into her songwriting machine (aka her brain.) It's cute and then sad and then cute again.
This Love, Clean and You Are In Love are slow so they aren't so giddy but I like them because they make me pause and then I'm like deep in thought "oh. love. that's what it's like." I Know Places is such a dark song that I'm like totally in love. I love the chorus and I kind of hate myself because it sounds so bad when I try to sing it because I can't hit the notes properly. Damn.
Wonderland... I can't even. There's nothing I can say that talks about the perfection that is wonderland. (didn't you flash your green eyes at me?)
AND FINALLY: New Romantics! New Romantics is like Taylor being all sassy and fierce. I love this song because it makes me feel good about myself and it's so relatable and all the jerks who say Taylor only writes songs about relationships and ex boyfriends needs to listen to it. It's like how we're too good to be crying and it's like the Kelly Clarkson song, Stronger. 

Um duh?

Sadly, Taylor keeps taking down any videos or MP3 of her songs that aren't bought. Basically, it's to get rid of piracy which I guess is a good thing. So if you want to listen to the songs, you're going to have to buy them.

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Album Review: Too Weird to Live, Too Rare to Die - Panic! At The Disco

Album: Too Weird to Live, Too Rare to Die
Artist: Panic! At The Disco
Release Date: October 8, 2013
Record Label: Fueled by Ramen
iTunes

Track Listing

1. This Is Gospel
2. Miss Jackson
3. Vegas Lights
4. Girl That You Love
5. Nicotine
6. Girls / Girls / Boys
7. Casual Affair
8. Far Too Young To Die
9. Collar Full
10. The End Of All Things
11. Can't Fight Against The Youth [Bonus Track]
12. All The Boys [Bonus Track]

This album was so freaking amazing. I feel like I'll only do album reviews if I want to review all the songs in a way where it isn't clogging up my posting system. This will be a review where all songs get the same verdict with a little blurb about each.

This is Gospel - I LOVE the use of the vocoder. This song is incredibly catchy and pretty freaking meaningful. IF YOU LOVE ME LET ME GO!
Miss Jackson - The singer in the beginning sings a really catchy hook. I also like how it's referencing Janet Jackson, even though the song is a bit different. My favorite part is "where will you be waking up tomorrow morning?"
Vegas Lights - This one was a bit less memorable for whatever reason. I'm not really into party songs, which is why I didn't like this one as much as the others.
Girl That You Love - I read a book like this once. It reminds me of the whole "there's a thin line between love and hate" because it uses the line "girl that you love, girl you loathe."
Nicotine - This is my absolute FAVORITE song on the album. I find it so catchy and so deep and meaningful. It's about being addicted to someone who's totally bad for them. Favorite lyric: "just one more hit and then we're through, cos you could never love me back, cut every tie I have to you, because your love's a __ drag."
Girls/Girls/Boys - From what I understand, this song is about being a lesbian. About how a girl is faking to be straight and I think that's something a LOT of people who can relate to. I really like how it isn't very obvious because those songs can also attract misunderstanding. My favorite lyric "girls like girls and boys and love is not a choice." It's VERY powerful to me.
Casual Affair - Also not a favorite. Most of the songs have great melodies without too mindblowing lyrics. Casual Affair is fine, but it's very repetitive. I didn't really feel a connection to the words, but I really like the music itself.
Far Too Young to Die - Another one of my favorites (2nd). This, like casual affair doesn't have many lyrics, but the lyrics that are there really stick in my head. I'm in love with the tune of this one, like I love nicotine.My favorite lyrics are "well I never really thought that you'd come tonight, while the crown hangs heavy on either side." I'm told this is about obsession, but I don't really get it. My interpretation is that it reminds me of Romeo and Juliet
Collar Full - The only song on the album that I don't really like. It's catchy but kind of annoying to me. The chorus is pretty much "show me your love" a bunch of times. It isn't bad, but it's my least liked on the album.
The End of All Things - a perfect and slow way to sum up the album. Without ending like a bang, Too Weird to Live, Too Rare to Die takes it a different way and ends slowly and gracefully.
Bonus Track: All The Boys - I feel like this is Miss Jackson part two. It's also like Miss Jackson and Girls/Girls/Boys had a child. I really enjoyed this song because it reminded me of all those play books I read!

 

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