Taylor Swift's new single

So this is kinda how I feel about the new Taylor Swift song.

Mumford: countdown to babel

Mumford & Sons // I Will Wait

Basically this album needs to come out. Now. 

To be released September 24th.

Even If It Breaks Your Heart

For when I'm in the country mood. ★

Perhaps I should put together country playlists more often. 

Already 330+ likes & 1,750 listens on 8tracks. Pleasantly surprised.

Happy Record Store Day!

In honor of Record Store Day, I thought I'd show you a peek of my small record collection. I made a few purchases just today-- Fleetwood Mac for 2 bucks at an antique store down the road. & The Shins purchased from Hoodlums Music and Movies in Tempe. I'd hoped to gets my hands on one of the 2,000 copies of Of Monsters and Men. But Hoodlums said they'd only received one, and someone snagged it early in the morning. Anyway, see some of my records after the "Read More".

Little Lion Woman

Just another playlist of three artists I can't get enough of:
Of Monsters and Men, Andrew Belle and Mumford & Sons.
Music makes everything more enjoyable,
like when you're relaxing on a Sunday afternoon in bed,
dreaming + planning a Tennessee vacation.
A trip will be made to the world's largest tree house.

Soon this playlist will be with my down dirt roads,
on the drive to the only place that feels like home.

A Real Human Being

A Real Hero (feat. Electric Youth)- College
I Guess I'm Floating- M83
We Move Lightly- Dustin O'Halloran
My Father's Father- The Civil Wars
Shake It Out- Florence + The Machine
No Light, No Light- Florence + The Machine
Can't Help Falling In Love- Ingrid Michaelson
Big Red Machine- Aaron Dessner & Justin Vernon
Wait- M83
Poison & Wine- The Civil Wars
Eyes Open- Taylor Swift
Dead Hearts- Stars
I Can't Make You Love Me/Nick of Time- Bon Iver
Hear Me Out- Frou Frou
Departures N1- Dustin O'Halloran

This is what I've been listening to on repeat this month. ★

Film + Music: We Bought A Zoo

After work we attended a pre-screening of We Bought A Zoo. I expected little. But I was captivated from beginning to end. The film inspired hope, love, beauty, adventure, enchantment, courage. & The entire soundtrack was more than fantastic. Tim, Sara, Ryan and I turned to each other when “Sinking Friendships” by Jónsi played on the screen. It’s the song that plays in our Chile video. It’s a song that sparks so much happiness, a memory of one of my own beautiful adventures in my life. It’s music that brings joy. & I’ve decided it’s what I’ll carry with me this winter.

Listen to an Exclusive Stream: Jonsi's 'We Bought a Zoo' Soundtrack at rollingstone.com.
We Bought A Zoo comes out in theaters on December 23rd. Go see it.

Music: Milo Greene

The Civil Wars Concert is on Sunday. & I'm actually quite excited to hear their opening act, Milo Greene. Take a listen? ★

Concert Review: Taylor Swift

A year ago I purchased Taylor Swift's Speak Now album, and blogged about how much I'm a fan. & On Saturday I attended the Taylor Swift concert-- where girls were decked out in sun dresses, cowboy boots and curly locks. & I'm positive the entire production was the prettiest thing I've ever seen. More so than any fairytale. Taylor's vision is breathtaking. A flying balcony, oversized screens with dreamy graphics, sparklers, glitter confetti, a revolving tree, fireworks, banjo + ukulele, a wedding scene, Romeo & Juliet ballet dancers, spiral staircases, glamorous ball gowns. It was a night that was sparkling, enchanting and simply magical. ♥

Autumn Mix: October

Kickin' off October with a playlist that begins with Ryan Gosling's band Dead Man's Bones. The song is a tad creepy & a ton rad. The remaining tunes are a random mix of what I'm currently liking. ♥

Concert Review: Bon Iver + Fleet Foxes

I’d anticipated it for months. For one night, and one night only, Fleet Foxes and Bon Iver teamed up to deliver a killer concert. There was little time to get ready after work. So a tease of the hair, change of shirt and the slip on of black moccasins had to suffice. Dinner was salty carmel frapps and a pumpkin scone. A half hour later and Lindsey and I were in downtown Phoenix, amidst a sea of beanies, plaid, skinny jeans and black-rimmed glasses. The streets buzzing with hipsters as we stood beneath a sign with flashing red letters, “Bon Iver and Fleet Foxes.”

The venue was new to me-- large, wide, open. The perfect scene. We found our seats on the second level in time to hear The Walkmen’s performance. I’d remembered them from my days watching The O.C. Between sets the screen read, “You are at a musical concert. Congratulations.” Beautiful melodies by Fleet Foxes combined with kaleidoscope patterns on the screen kept me in a trance. And by the end I was hungry, tired and in complete anticipation of Bon Iver.

Bohemian rugs scattered across the stage. Lights in the background. There are no words to explain the next hour. All I can say is it was by far the most fantastic concert I’ve attended. I was awestruck and mesmerized from start to finish. Justin Vernon’s voice, the violinist, two drum sets, sax, french horn, trumpet, guitars, keyboards, combined into the most beautiful sound. It was everything music should be. It was art. It was inspiration. It was true. It was rad. And it all came to a close with The Wolves and Skinny Love, where the audience and all members of the band (aside from the drummers) sang and clapped in unison. The Bon Iver frontman said it best-- that night was like “f’in birthday cake.”

Countdown to Happiness

Currently counting down to:
1. Cool weather, pumpkin spice lattes, corn mazes, Halloween decorations & all things fall.
2. Spending Labor Day weekend at my grandparents cabin in the mountains, where I can lay on the front porch swing bundled in an over-sized sweater and write, write, write.
3. Three fantastic concerts in the upcoming months--
September: Bon Iver + Fleet Foxes // October: Taylor Swift // November: The Civil Wars
4. The third season premiere of The Vampire Diaries. + The release of the second season on DVD. + Finishing the first season with one of the besties (her first time seeing the show).
5. Thanksgiving spent in Tennessee with my parents. By then it will have been 11 months since I've last seen them, and my dog (hoping she remembers me!). & Wishing for snow & some time spent in Nashville.

Q: What are you looking forward to? ♥

TOT: Volume Four

Currently listening to Volume 4 and past Ten out of Tenn albums-- Enjoy!

This is the perfect relaxing morning, spent getting ready before I go shopping with my grandma. A pot of Brazilian coffee newly purchased from Mee Mee's market is brewing. And the latest album from Ten out of Tenn is playing through the speakers, making me day dream that I am back in Tennessee. I can't wait for Thanksgiving. I miss the South too much.

Music Monday: Mat Kearney

My weekend was fabulous. Two days were spent listening to free concerts in the park, featuring artists Mat Kearney, Phil Wickham, TobyMac, The Band Perry and Skillet. The artists gathered for Arizona CityFest. The artists led 60 thousand people in worship and I can't tell you how wonderful it felt to be in the crowd-- perfect weather, a slight breeze, just singing along. My absolute favorite performance was the wonderful Nashville-based songwriter Mat Kearney. I've been in love with his rapping choruses and thoughtful, poetic lyrics for quite some time. & His voice is pretty much addicting. Have a listen? ★

The world spins madly on

After work I heard news of Japan, listening to mother describe the apocalyptic madness happening on the other side of the world. Heartbreaking terror. If only life granted me to hop on a plane. Footage of waves of debris, cars and ships floating like lava across farm land, toward homes and traffic. Helpless. Watered eyes. Sending prayers.

I escaped home early evening, bent on not remaining trapped inside four white walls. Barnes & Noble was my first destination, walking the aisles of fiction literature for over an hour, debating which novel to add to my collection. Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer, The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien, The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand, and Incendiary by Chris Cleave all caught my eye, until I settled on True Grit by Charles Portis. I debated attending the movies- alone- but found myself nonchalantly walking about the outdoor shopping mall.

Mother and I talked on the phone, discussing my yearning for a home. Selfish, I think. Analyzing, reflecting, appreciating life, I waited in the 20-car line at In N’ Out. The windows were rolled down as I drove down the freeway, listening to The OC mixes. The sunroof open, catching glimpses of the sky above between slurps of chocolate shake. For a brief moment I imagined a make-believe field where no harm can touch me, gazing at the constellations. I took a detour down a desert road, near a ritzy neighborhood. It’s one of my favorite places to escape, on the top of the hill, where my eyes can behold a sea of endless city lights. ★

Rainy Day Playlist

It's a rainy day, which calls for a pretty playlist. Click the 'read more' button to listen to pretty tunes. ★

I'm a light sleeper, but a heavy dreamer.

Today feels like a holiday with mother preparing a big feast for brother's going away dinner. I've been in a daydream all afternoon. Surrounded by ribbon, crinkled paper and empty tea cups while drops of rain stare at me from the window. Days like these make my heart smile.

These pictures are not my own. Please click for credit. ★

Hello, December

It feels as if I've had a constant headache for the past week or so. Feeling this way has me uninspired to write at the moment, to be honest. & I feel as if my brain has been complete mush. Pray this doesn't last for the rest of the week? I hope some more pretty pictures & a playlist will suffice. ★

I was enchanted to meet you

I can remember the first time I heard Taylor Swift on the radio. I was a 16-year-old in my first serious relationship. I was driving in my car on my way to my grandparent’s house. It was nighttime and I had an inkling to listen to country music. That’s when the lyrics “he says the way my blue eyes shine put those Georgia stars to shame that night” first played through my car speakers. And I suppose I’ve been a Taylor Swift fan ever since.

Music, um, Thursday?

I first heard First Aid Kit, well, about an hour ago via Tumblr. Let me just say, I've already fallen in love. Their music is definitely one of the prettiest things I've stumbled upon in quite a while. The two Swedish sisters, Johanna Söderberg and Klara Söderberg, have voices that are angelic, exquisite and pure. & Their harmonies are incredible. Considering many of their lyrics discuss death and decay, I'd say their music is pretty much perfect for an autumn day spent driving on roads covered in fallen leaves. Especially days where my mother has me accompany her to search for abandoned cemeteries in the woods because of her obsession with ancestry dot com and her eagerness to know more about her ancestors. Don't you agree?