Pop Music

David D’Alessio Wants To Embrace A First Summer Without Thinking About The Pandemic And There’s ‘Nowhere Else’ He Wants To Be!

Published

1 month ago

May 24, 2022

As we approach a Summer where we can at last contemplate all being in a room together listening to music without looking at a sea of masks, all think about hugging strangers and all dream about walking hand in hand on a beach with the person we love, it seems we need an anthem and David D’Alessio has provided us with a song that has quite simply become my go to feel-good song at the moment. If all of that pent up excitement for a return to normality could be bottled up in a song, then this artist has done just that with a song that fills me with the same joy that the classic Don Henley song ‘Boys of Summer’ did all those years ago.

After David’s last contemplative and introspective EP ‘This Far Apart’, the last thing I honestly expected from the artist was this song and yet it somehow feels like he’s managed to completely sense the feelings that we’ve all had during the last few years; he has understood our anxieties during the pandemic and now he completely understands the euphoria and joy of looking forward instead of backwards. The production encapsulates everything you’d want from a Summer anthem; its Bryan Adams, Don Henley and the Beach Boys thrown in a shaker and mixed up to provide us with a cocktail of positivity.

David was born and raised in Hawaii and lived for many years in Arizona, where he was once hailed as the “Jason Mraz of the Southwest”; all of these influences feel strong in this release which would sit happily blasting out of a boom box on a beach or at a Summer Country music festival. The lyrics read like a checklist of everything you’d want from the perfect Summer but underlying that is a wonderful love song about appreciating what’s right here, right now. It says look around and enjoy what is under your nose, kiss the ones you love, play on the beach with your children, snap those selfies, drink a cold beer but most importantly give thanks that we’ve waited so long to enjoy something that we lost, that we all took for granted but now have back. In short, enjoy the simple things. There’s no mention of possessions, just experiences because if the pandemic has taught us anything, it’s that people and experiences are what make us human, it’s touching and interacting and smiling and loving that make us happiest so let’s grab this Summer, pull it in and hold it in our hearts. The feeling of endless Summer is what we all need and David’s right….there’s ‘Nowhere Else’ any of us would rather be.

David says of the song:

”I feel like ‘Nowhere Else I Wanna Be’ is the natural counterweight and the perfect follow up to the EP. Sometimes, it’s important to reflect on things in your life, but other times, you just want to forget it and be free. This song is my way of saying, hey, I can have fun too! I wrote it first on acoustic guitar and thought it might be an acoustic track. Then I realised, no, we’ve been waiting for this release from the pandemic and a COVID-free summer for a long time- so let’s chant. Let’s celebrate”

The song was born when David was driving back from the Jersey shore on a late Summer day in September 2021 with his wife and seven-year-old daughter when a melody that had long been in his mind suddenly floated into his head. Feeling sunburn and sunspent, with his feet on the dash as his wife was driving, and with the wind in his hair, he started to reflect on the lockdown and the freedom everyone craved and what would be the things that give that forever summer feeling. From there the song almost wrote itself and it was easy to write a song about losing the restrictions the pandemic brought with it and embracing life and the simple things that make us want to smile; the things we’ve been dreaming of for so long. That possibility of being in that Summer feeling forever, that need to tap into our inner energy and be thankful.

David says of his music:

“Music and I are in a long term relationship that I’m never gonna get out of. ‘Nowhere Else I Wanna Be’ makes me feel that I still have so much to explore as a songwriter and artist. It makes me feel free, not only in the kid-like sense of never leaving the beach in my mind, but also as an artist not attached to any particular sound. The joy of creation for me is like Elsa singing ‘Into The Unknown’ in Frozen 2. That’s a comparative reference only a Dad with a seven-year-old daughter would make!”

For me David D’Alessio is everything you want your favourite artist to be. He might not feel that he’s locked into any particular genre and that’s great because it’s all essentially pop, whether it’s Indie, Country, Blues or Soul, and we want our artists to be dipping into all of those influences but the one thing that David is locked into is that ability to tap into the myriad of emotions that live inside us and make us tick. Right now, everyone is feeling the joy and hope of a Summer where we can all be together at last and frankly he’s right; there’s ‘Nowhere Else (we) Wanna Be’.

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Pop Music

Jedward Save The Best For Last With Incredible Glasgow Show At G2 The Garage

Published

1 hour ago

July 4, 2022

DJ Hittman

It’s almost like a homecoming whenever Jedward perform in Glasgow. Sure, they’re from Dublin, and still live there, and the vast majority of their work since the start of their career started has been in London; but Glasgow is where it all began, with them first stepping out onto the X Factor stage and John saying, “Glasgow! How you feeling tonight!”

And even though that was a very long time ago – 13 years even – Glasgow certainly took John and Edward to their hearts, and their love was evident last night when they performed at G2 at The Garage, in Sauchiehall Street.

While the set list for the show was much the same as the previous two, there were some distinct Scottish elements, including a rousing all audience rendition of The Proclaimers’ classic, ‘500 Miles’, a snippet of The Bay City Rollers’ hit, ‘Bye Bye Baby’, and a drink of a can of Irn Bru.

Edward drinking Irn Bru – Photo Credit: Lisa Hafey

Many fans had travelled to Glasgow for last night’s show, quite a lot had attended all three, while some went directly from Manchester, due to not having got tickets for London, or choosing to have a break in between. Still others attended London and Glasgow back to back; but regardless of how many concerts or which the fans attended, they were there, reunited, as if the three long years since they’d seen each other, and of course their faves, John and Edward. While the Jedward fandom is largely social-media based, with their fans making firm friendships with other likeminded people from all over the world, there’s no substitute for meeting in person. Having said that, many of the audience shared their view of the show on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok, so those who couldn’t make it would still be able to feel part of the community. Much has been said about Jedward, but for those who *get* them, and *love* them, they become like family, and this extends to the fans too. While the fans all know each other, John and Edward know, or at least try to know, each and every one of them. The Jedward fandom is in essence actually a multitude of different, individual fandoms, with each having their own relationship with the twins, that might be slightly different to everyone else’s, but no less valid.

There’s no greater example of this relationship than their meet and greets that happen before each show. These started last night shortly after 4pm, and were still going at nearly 7. Never once did they slow down, or complain about how many people were there, but instead, they remembered personal points about each person, and chatted, while photos were taken. They gave each person their own experience, and made them feel special. After all, they’ve not seen us for 3 years either!

Special mention must go to the two girls who won tickets to last night’s show courtesy of a competition on Jedward’s TikTok account. The pair were so keen to be in the front row that they stood outside for the 3 hours of the meet and greets, just to be at the barricade. That’s Jedication!

Jedward mentioned that there will be further concerts in November. With their fifth album set for release this autumn, there’s certainly a lot of Jedward content on the horizon, and we can’t wait!

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Pop Music

Jedward’s Sold Out Concert At London’s Camden Assembly Was Extraordinary!

Published

1 day ago

July 3, 2022

DJ Hittman

The Jedward journey continued last night with an extraordinary sold out show at London’s Camden Assembly.

Singing most of the same set as the Manchester show, they added several more from their latest album ‘Voice Of A Rebel’, including ‘Thirsty’, and ‘Follow My Whispers’.

The show coincided with London’s Pride Parade, and so John and Edward highlighted the event, borrowing a Pride flag from the audience while singing their song, ‘Good Vibes’, which contains the lyric, “pour me a rainbow I need colour again”. They also gave a call out to the LGBTQIA community – adding a letter J (for Jedward) to the end.

Like the previous evening, there were several songs sung a Capella, as well as the acoustic session – ‘Nothing Compares 2U’, ‘Wonderwall’, and ‘Teenage Dirtbag’, and a mashup of three of their songs, ‘Never Better’, ‘What’s Your Number?’, and ‘Girl Like You’.

Just like the Manchester show, a lot of the newer members of the audience have come from discovering Jedward on TikTok, which is clearly a great platform for them. London has always been a major hub for Jedward, and so it should come as no surprise that this show sold out; it was great to see fans new and old mingling and enjoying each other’s company, united in the shared love of John and Edward.

The Jedward Juggernaut moves tonight to Glasgow’s G2 at the Garage. Limited tickets are still available via Ticketweb.

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Pop Music

What Song Does Eddie Munson Play in ‘Stranger Things’ Finale?

Published

2 days ago

July 2, 2022

DJ Hittman

There’s a lot on the minds of Stranger Things fans after the Season 4 finale. But now, fans have the answer to what song Eddie Munson performed during the final episode of the show.

Warning: Stranger Things Season 4 spoilers ahead!

Earlier this month when the Stranger Things teaser trailer was released, fans saw that Eddie would be playing the guitar on top of a trailer in the Upside Down during a lightning storm.

TikTok users began analyzing the clip to see what chords he was playing to see if they could determine what song he would be performing. Some TikTokers theorized that it was Europe’s “The Final Countdown” while some correctly figured out the tune.

Eddie Munson (played by Joseph Quinn) dedicated the song to Chrissy before breaking out into an epic guitar solo. The song turned out to be “Master of Puppets” by Metallica. The song is the title track from the band’s 1986 record.

This season, other artists like KISS, Journey, Talking Heads, The Beach Boys and Kate Bush had their music featured in the hit 80’s-themed Netflix series. Quinn actually used music to get into his character.

“I listened to a lot of heavy metal and that was my… God, it’s impossible to not sound pretentious when you say it, but, yeah, that was my way in,” he told Entertainment Weekly.

Prior to filming, Quinn actually began playing guitar after watching Jack Black in the 2003 cult-classic School of Rock.

“I’ve played since I was 7, and I’ve had huge breaks,” he shared. “I wouldn’t consider myself a brilliant guitarist, but I can play it. That was very lucky because those scripts came out, I think, at some point in the pandemic. I did start practicing pretty furiously.”

Watch the epic scene, below.