February 2015

KRIZIA

1. Instax Mini 8
I've wanted a polaroid camera since i was little but i never got round to purchasing one. When i came back home from my travels, i pointed out how cute the Instax Mini's were to my parents but never mentioned them again. They ended up getting me a pink one for my birthday and it SO cute! It's a  shame the film is so expensive though, makes me not want to use it as much.

2. ASOS shoes
I used to have a gold and black pair like these (minus the studs) from River Island, but they got so scratched and uncomfortable i had to chuck them out. I had a hard time trying to find another pair in the same style, then i got an ASOS birthday code, so of course i spent the next few hours browsing the site for things to buy. The second i saw these bad boys i knew i had to have them! and luckily i got one of the last few pairs in my size. They are so amazing in real life, super comfy, and so me!

3. Boxing
I've recently taken up boxing, it's something i've always wanted try out but was too lazy to actually give it a go. I ached for days afterwards but it's so fun! and a great way for relieving stress.

4. & 5. Shirt dresses
I'm so into shirt dresses right now! I've been patiently waiting for these two to come back in stock and i'm so in love with them. I love that they're simple enough for casual wear, but you can also glam them up to wear on a night out.

What were your favourite things this month?

K.
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Happy Birthday to my hermana from another madre, and the co-founder of this blog.
You truly are the Jesy to my Pierre, the Hamish to my Andy and the Fletch to my Vaughn!
I remember the first time we met unofficially lining up at the butt crack of dawn for Panic! At The Disco not realising the friendship that would soon blossom!

Without Therese I'd hate to think what kind of lives we'd be leading, perhaps a half life like Voldemort when he drank unicorn's blood.
Thank you for all the experiences we've had, AND for getting me to ride a rollercoaster for the first time.. complete with loop de loop.
Thanks for laughing at all my jokes and for all our 90s pop song 1D acoustic medley mixes.

A MASSIVE MASSIVE thanks has to be had for understanding when i'm not able to do posts as regularly as we want due to uni third year work.

Miss you everyday not being in London, but we'll always have iMessage (and our epic .gif conversations) and Skype!


LOVE YOU AND HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
Here's to many more memories and LGC good times for years to come!

Here's a lil walk down memory lane... remember this?

In 2011 the Foo Fighters rocked Auckland, literally, the show caused a very minor earthquake!

Although their recent show at Mt Smart Stadium on Saturday didn't make the earth rock enough to record any tremors, they still played one hell of show!

This wasn't my first Foo Fighters show, so i knew what to expect from the legendary band who are in their 20th year together! and they were just as incredible as when i saw them for the first time 10 years ago. The New Zealand leg of the Sonic Highways tour started off earlier in the week with a few hiccups. Thousands of fans were left stuck in the queue as the Foos took to the stage in Christchurch, then their equipment truck was involved in a bad accident on the way to Auckland, which meant their charity gig at the Town Hall had to be cancelled. Luckily their stadium show went off without a hitch!

The almost 3 hour show was full of crowd pleasers and hits from every album, as well as a few covers. 'Something From Nothing' from new album Sonic Highways opened the night, which was followed by mass singalongs from a rowdy crowd to 'The Pretender', 'Learn To Fly', 'Break Out' and 'My Hero' as well as oldies 'Big Me' and 'Monkey Wrench', before ending the night with the classic 'Everlong'.

The thing i love the most about Foo Fighter shows is that they don't appeal to a specific group of people. There are young children to old couples and families who go to be blown away by one of the greatest front men in the industry. The Foo Fighters are one of the few bands around that will never disappoint live, and they don't seem to be putting a stop to their career any time soon as they promised to return to rock the Auckland Town Hall.

K.

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I'm very picky when it comes to film/tv adaptations of comic books so i was a little skeptical about getting into Gotham. Luckily i've been recording it just in case i ever wanted to check it out, and i'm SO glad i did.

Gotham is of course based on the characters and stories in the Batman franchise, and primarily revolves around a young James Gordon (The O.C's Ben McKenzie) and his early days in the Gotham police force following the murders of Thomas and Martha Wayne. The show also takes a look at the origin stories of several well known Batman villains such as Penguin, Riddler, Catwoman, Poison Ivy, Electrocutioner, Joker, Scarecrow, Two-Face, Victor Zsasz and an original villain Fish Mooney created specially for the series.

As a new recruit to the Gotham police department James Gordon is teamed with detective Harvey Bullock (Donal Logue) to solve the Wayne murders. During the investigation Gordon and Bullock become involved with Gotham's mafia including Mooney, Don Falcone, and Italian mob boss Salvatore Maroni.

Season 1 is nearing the end with 6 episodes left until the finale, and the series has recently been renewed for a second season. I'm a little unsure about the show introducing so many characters already, even if it is briefly (recently Robin's future parents appeared briefly). I feel like having too many characters at once is going to create too many confusing story lines and plot holes. But for now it works and the casting is A+! Penguin, Riddler, and Zsasz steal the show.

K.
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Fresh Off the Boat is the brand new ABC comedy based on Eddie Huang's (comedian, chef, and MTV's Snack-Off host) 2013 memoir.

The show is done in a similar style to Everybody Hates Chris, with 11 year old hip hop loving Eddie narrating his life. Fresh Off the Boat follows Eddie's Taiwanese family as they move from the comforts of D.C's s Chinatown to Orlando, Florida to open up a steak restaurant.

The entire family (grandma Huang included) have to try and adapt to the new culture in Florida. As dad Louis embraces the American Dream, mum Jessica struggles with the culture shock in their new home.  Meanwhile Eddie and his two little brothers Emery and Evan have to deal with making new friends and trying to fit in at school.

The show is still very new so i'm eager to see how it goes, but right now i'm loving it. Episode 5 just aired so you can easily catch up!

K.
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Chris Hemsworth is this weeks MCM, hailing from the sunny beaches of Australia.

We first saw Chris Hemsworth on the small screen playing Kim Hyde in Home and Away, however now we're more than likely to see the blue eyed, blondie on the big screen playing one of our favourite Norse Gods Thor. Or as the huntsman in Snow White & the Huntsman, and even the famous race car driver James Hunt in Rush. 

Chris Hemsworth isn't the only good looking, blue eyed boy in his family with both his brothers Liam and Luke sharing those trademark baby blues and cheeky smile. 

Unfortunately though ladies he is off the market after marrying Spanish actress Elsa Pataky in 2010.

Next up for Chris is of course the new Avengers film being released later this year (Age of Ultron) which we here at LGC CAN NOT WAIT FOR! 

S.

x

Thriller Live is heading into its 6th year in London's West End and has recently been making its way around Australia and now New Zealand for a short run until the 22nd.

I attended the opening night last night and although there were a few ups and downs in the beginning, overall it was enjoyable! Thriller Live is of course a celebration of the King of Pop's work from the Jackson 5 to Michael's solo career. As the show is more of a tribute/concert it was a little hard to get into it at first because it was a journey through Michael's different music styles with different vocalists singing different songs rather than a biography with one person playing Michael. 

The first hour of the show was a little underwhelming. While i was in London i went to a West End celebration at Trafalgar Square where there are brief performances from West End musicals. Thriller Live picked a Jackson 5 number and i was really impressed with the kids that were cast to play the brothers. However the kids aren't part of the cast down under which is a real shame, i think they would have really wowed the audience and made the opening extra special. After a little crowd participation the audience were starting to loosen up and get into the groove. But just as things were heating up the atmosphere died down and it continued to go up and down until the end of the first half where we were only just starting to get a taste of bigger and better things to come in the second half.

The show really does save the best till last but it is well worth it! The last half an hour of epicness kicked off with 'P.Y.T' followed by stand out performances of 'Beat It', 'Smooth Criminal', 'Man in the Mirror', 'They Don't Care About Us', and 'Earth Song'. The show is packed with all of MJ's biggest hits, but i was disappointed that 'You Are Not Alone' and 'Remember the Time' were left out.

Besides a few dancers not putting in as much effort into the choreography as others during some songs, the cast were fantastic. All the notes were hit every time and Sean Christopher was mesmerising as the main MJ dancer (and one of the lead vocalists), particularly during 'Smooth Criminal'. Alex Buchanan was my personal favourite lead vocalist, he is scarily good at what he does, at times i thought i was listening to the real MJ singing live in front of me.

Half way through i wasn't too sure if i made the right decision to go but at the end of the night i left feeling satisfied. Thriller Live won't be everyones cup of tea but as a huge Michael Jackson fan i loved watching this tribute to one of the greatest performers of all time. It's an emotional reminder of just how great he truly was and that there will never be anyone like him again, but his legacy will live on.

Thriller Live runs until Sunday February 22nd at the Civic Theatre in Auckland, NZ.
Tickets are still available from www.ticketmaster.co.nz

K.
x

Meet YEARS AND YEARS

After seeing their name pop up a few times on YouTube and thinking nothing of it, it wasn't until I was parking my car and their song "King" came on the radio (I think I was listening to Radio 1) that I finally listened to these guys and became hooked!

Years and Years are an electronica band hailing from London and is a 3 piece band consisting of: Olly Alexander, Mikey Goldsworth and Erme Turkmen.

Originally a 5 piece band, the group formed in 2010 after Mikey moved from Australia to London and met Erme online. However in 2013,  Noel Leeman and Oliver Subria decided to leave the band.
In 2014 Years and Years signed to Polydor Records and released their EP "Take Shelter" where it reached number 1 on the iTunes electronics chart.
It wasn't until 2015 that the band got their big spotlight after Zane Lowe selected their latest single "King" as his Hottest Record of the Day.
They also won the coveted BBC Sounds award in 2015 and have been nominated for a Brit Award.

Years & Years have been described as electro-pop, with R&B and 90s house elements.
They are definitely ones to watch this year, and are on my list of Bands to see!
If you love bands who like to mix different genres together (like I do) you need to check out Years and Years if you haven't already!



S.
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Fifth Harmony are continuing the X Factor tradition of runners up becoming more successful than the winners. The girls, who originally auditioned as solo artists, came in third place in the second season of the U.S version of the hit reality show. Two years later they have finally released their long awaited debut album 'Reflection'.

Following the huge success of their lead single 'BO$$' mid last year and their second single 'Sledgehammer' later in the year, I was expecting big things from the girls first album, and Reflection does not disappoint!

I was quite surprised with how much I loved the album considering I wasn't the biggest Fifth Harmony fan at first (but they've grown on me quite a bit since their album dropped). I love the blend of pop, dance and club tracks to hip hop and R&B, I only wish that they had added a few more ballads to the mix because the girls have killer vocals! 

There is not one song on the album that I can fault. 'Worth It (feat. Kid Ink)' is the third single which will be released next month, is one of the stand outs on the album and has a bit of a 'Talk Dirty' vibe to it. But my three favourite tracks are definitely 'Reflection', 'Top Down' which is such a great car jam, and the closing track 'Brave, Honest, Beautiful (feat. Meghan Trainor)'.

I love the female empowerment in the songs. Fifth Harmony are one of the leading girl bands right now spreading positivity and inspiring girls everywhere to be confident, which is very important in this day and age. 

Girl Power!

K.

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If Quentin Tarantino met James Bond you would get Kingsman: The Secret Service.

Spy films are not my cup of tea, films based on comic books are, so i was a little torn between seeing this movie or not.

I had little knowledge about the comic/film beforehand and i was initially drawn to it because of the director Matthew Vaughn (Kick Ass and X-Men: First Class). It's a little too early to say that the film is my favourite of 2015, but right now it takes the cake!

Kingsman is loosely based on The Secret Service comics. The film follows a group of secret agents, who after the death of one of their spies, must each find a new protege to undergo several tests and one will ultimately become a Kingsman. Harry Hart played by the very suave Colin Firth takes Gary 'Eggsy' Unwin (newcomer Taron Egerton) under his wing. Eggsy didn't have the best upbringing, and although he is smart and talented he spoils his chances by mixing with the wrong crowd. Harry sees this as an opportunity to guide Eggsy to do better things, like saving the world, which looks to be doomed thanks to Richmond Valentine (Samuel L. Jackson) and his bad ass bionic assistant Gazelle (Sofia Boutella).

Kingsman: The Secret Service is the perfect balance of comedy and action with a bit of violence on the side, and i was not expecting to walk away loving it as much as i did. From the moment it started i was completely engrossed until the credits started rolling. The cast are brilliant (and easy on the eyes!), and the newcomers are even more fantastic.

Kingsman: The Secret Service is out now in The U.K, and released today in New Zealand and Australia. The movie will be released over the next few weeks for the rest of the world.

K.
x

Leave a comment letting us know what's on your Wishlist Wednesday this week!

S. & K.
xx

If you have a few days to kill i definitely recommend taking a Haggis Tour around Scotland. Their office is located on the Royal Mile and the tour guides are brilliant! If you're struggling to think of New Years plans you should consider going to Edinburgh for Hogmanay, one of the biggest New Years celebrations in Europe that you do not want to miss.

If you haven't heard by now the brand new season 5 Game of Thrones trailer was released on the weekend. You can read our post about it here.

So of course we had to pick the one and only Jon Snow, aka Kit Harington aka Christopher Harington as our MCM this week.

If you didn't know, he's actually a bit posh~ his ancestors include some Baronet's and Viscount's.

He began his acting career in theatre where he was the lead role in War Horse before landing his big television role in Game of Thrones playing one of our favourites Jon Snow.

He had a go at a few films which were just awful! (Silent Hill: Revelation and Pompeii- although Pompeii is alright if you just want to stare at his ripped body the whole time) But his future films Seventh Son and Testament of Youth look promising. We can't wait to see more of the adorable sad faced Jon in April.

K. & S.

xx