My Favorite Songs of 2015

As with most people, I have heard an enormous amount of songs this year, both new and old. And, as with many, I have compiled a list of my favorite songs of the year 2015. Because of the subjective nature of these type of lists, I will say that this is my opinion, and please feel free to let me know if I missed any gems.

Before we progress, a bit about the methodology I employed when creating my list of top songs. First and most importantly - the song must have been released on an album or EP/LP in the calendar year of 2015. That is, if the single came out in 2014 but the album was released in 2015, that song belongs to the 2015 list. Also, I have decided to limit the list to 1 song per album, so as to prevent my entire list simply being a track list for Chvrches' album Every Open Eye.

I will say that I have heard some truly amazing songs this year, far too many to include on a Best Of list such as this, so please do not hate me for omitting some truly great songs from amazing artists and bands. I have worked hard to make this list as diverse and objective as I can, however the final decision and ordering did end up being directly aligned with my own personal taste in music and, of course, I unfortunately did not have the opportunity to listen to every single song released in 2015, so if I did not hear it, I did not include it on this list (obviously!)

Alright folks, lets go! Fifteen to One, here are my top 15 songs of 2015. Enjoy!

15.
Tropic of Cancer
by Panda Bear
from the album Panda Bear Meets the Grim Reaper

14.
Fire n Gold
by Bea Miller
from the album Not an Apology









13.
Thunderstruck
by Owl City
from the album Mobile Orchestra









12.
Empire
by Of Monsters and Men
from the album Beneath the Skin










11.
Happy
by Marina and the Diamonds
from the album Froot










10.
New Americana
by Halsey
from the album Badlands











09.
Pay No Mind
by Madeon
from the album Adventure









08.
Mason Jar
by Smallpools
from the album Lovetap!









07.
Majorette
by Beach House
from the album Thank Your Lucky Stars









06.
All That
by Carley Rae Jepson
from the album Emotion









05.
The Shade
by Metric
from the album Pagans in Vegas









04.
All I Need
by Passion Pit
from the album Kindred









03.
Repetition
by Purity Ring
from the album Another Eternity









02.
Realiti
by Grimes
from the album Art Angels









01.
Playing Dead
by Chvrches
from the album Every Open Eye









And that, ladies and gentleman, is my top 15 songs of 2015. Please share your own lists and let me know where you agree with me, and where you think I went wrong! I would also love to learn about new artists, so if you think I missed a great song, let me know!

Thank you so much for reading, happy 2016, and I look forward to more great music to keep me going through the new year!

Let’s talk Jessica Jones

Jessica Jones, the second installment of the Marvel/Netflix deal was released last Friday to overwhelmingly positive reviews and a tremendous amount of hype. But is the show really all it’s cracked up to be? Well, that really depends. As a show that came from a comic series originally intended for a more mature audience, the creators of the Netflix series were able to leverage that to create a darker, more sinister show, while maintaining the continuity between the other marvel shows in the franchise. However, don’t think for a second that you need to be a super hero fan to enjoy this show. In fact, if you have never even seen a Marvel film or show, this one might just be the one to start with.

Even from the first episode, it is clear this is no Avengers style A-list action film. Far from it. The tone is much more noir and is much more of an intellectual and mental experience than an action flick. The show manages to be almost more of a psychological drama than a super hero show, and honestly, Jessica Jones really doesn’t bust out her kick ass powers all that often.

This is a show far more interested in the characters, their interactions and the effects of past trauma coming back to haunt them. It’s a show that leaves you feeling sorry for nearly every character, and through the use of cinematography and a near perfect performance from the cast, it is a show that will make you sit at your desk after watching it for a good while just processing a range of emotions. Not a small feat to be sure.

Speaking of which, the acting. Let us take a moment to talk about the acting. We’ll start with Krysten Ritter, who plays Jessica Jones. While her performances in the past (Breaking Bad, Don’t trust the B in Apt. 23) have not been at all bad, she truly shows us what she is capable of in her role as the title character. Overall a fantastic performance, but there are three or four scenes that really stood out. I cannot describe them here, (spoilers) but you will know them when you see them. She has the ability to be at once vulnerable and powerful, and the way in which she plays Jessica Jones is truly spot on.

While Krysten Ritter’s performance is phenomenal, I would be remiss to overlook the insanely fantastic portrayal of Kilgrave, played by David Tennant (Doctor Who, Broadchurch). Something about watching Tennant play this sociopathic mind controlling villain is just enchanting. The way that he is able to make one feel complete contempt for the character and immediately after something that nearly resembles sympathy is truly amazing.

I should not focus on only these two portrayals, however. In fact, the entire cast was a joy to watch preform. I really cannot pick out a character that was not well acted. Sure, there are characters that I did not like, but that is quite a different category from being poorly acted.

And really, that is the overall feel of the show. Never a part that I felt was poorly done. Parts that were less intriguing but needed for story development were given enough attention to make them watchable, and the cinematography matched the tone of the show quite nicely.

But is the show really all it’s cracked up to be? Well, that really depends. If you are expecting a super hero show, Jessica Jones is not that. It is a psychological drama that happens to have a few superhero characters in it. Is it good television? Absolutely. In fact, it is likely better than most TV shows out there today. And it’s dark, tackling issues and situations nearly never ventured into by “mainstream” TV networks. It is a fantastic show, but something is, perhaps, missing.

It’s a show that is almost perfect, but just not quite. Something is missing, but one cannot be sure exactly what it is. Nothing is inherently wrong with it, but that key ingredient is somehow, not there. A show that could have easily been the best show of 2015 is somehow only one of the best shows of 2015. What’s missing is unclear, but the hype of the show and the insanely positive reviews are likely somewhat to blame. It is truly hard to live up to an impossible image of what a show might be.

And really, I think this is a show that was hurt more by the hype than by anything else. If this was a show that no one know about and just sort of happened, it would be fantastic. As it is, the show is 99% of fantastic. But, in today’s overly crowded and competitive television arena, 99% of fantastic is about as good as it gets.

The Verdict:

9/10 - Fantastic

Nanowrimo 2015 (Or Zero Draft Thirty for us screenwriter types)

Alright. So, you may have heard of Nanowrimo, an annual event utilizing the internet to bring novelists together in the effort to write the first draft of a novel in 30 days (the number of days in November.) Speaking of which, Nanowrimo is an acronym of sorts, it stands for National Novel Writing Month. But I am not a novelist, but why let that stop me from participating?

Exactly. I just saw a Facebook post from a friend of mine talking about Zero Draft Thirty, the same concept but for screenwriters. Now, I am not a screenwriter either, however I am a filmmaker and would love to explore more about the screenwriting process, as, after all, scripts are really important for film making. Like, really, really, really important.

So, if I'm going to make a film, I need a script, so why not start one this November for Zero Draft Thirty? Yes, this seems like a great idea. Oh, right, I need to think of a story. Shoot, this might be more difficult than I thought. Anyways, I will try, and we'll see what happens! I will be making some videos on my YouTube channel on this topic as well, so feel free to follow my progress over there as well. (I will post the first video as an update to this post once I have filmed it.)

For more info on this project, check out: https://gointothestory.blcklst.com/2015/10/zero-draft-thirty-write-a-script-in-a-month-challenge.html

Thanks all! Talk soon :)
- David

So, I have a blog.... Remember?

Hello people of Earth!

Remember that long ago time in an age long past when a young whippersnapper of a college student started this thing called a "blog" on the interwebs? That lad was, for all intents and purposes, dedicated to creating an interesting, stimulation collection of entries focusing on a wide variety of topics, discussions and ideas. That was this blog, and believe it or not, I am, indeed, that person.

However, in the last 5 years that I have been doing this, there has been a [huge] flux and flow in the frequency and depth of my blog posts. For the past few months, I have, well, not done anything at all with my blog, and that fact saddens me greatly. I truly love posting my bizarre thoughts, reviews, comments and ideas here on my blog, and I have been slacking in that department for far too long.

First, let's examine who I am now. I recently graduated from university, which is a huge achievement and I am extremely proud of that accomplishment, and thankful to so many people who helped me through the process - especially my fantastic parents who were there for me through the entire process.

Now that I am a "free" person for the first time since first grade, I am really enjoying life. Sure there are struggles and issues that have come up that I have had to work through, but I am now at a point in my life where I can really begin to start working on my future and begin the process of figuring out what my calling may be.

But what does all this mean for you, dear reader? Well, I shall enlighten you! My blog will become the pseudo "hub" of my internet presence, from which you will be able to access all of my internet sites, like YouTube, Twitter, etc.

But what this also means is that I want this blog to be active. Because my goal is to make this the hub of my little network of websites and social media outlets, I really want this to be a full fledged blog, with regular content and consistent posts. So, because of that, I have decided to create a challenge for myself, namely to post at least 1 post here per week. Perhaps a review, perhaps an update, or perhaps a short story. Really, the point is to build and shape this blog into a kaleidoscope of content that reflects me and my personality.

So please, join me on this journey to create a new and improved blog experience. We will create some content and tell some stories, which is really what this place called the internet is all about.

Thank you, and I will talk to you soon.

New Song from Owl City - Verge

Although I miss the days of when Owl City's songs were almost entirely metaphor, I must say that I continue to fall in love with music by the wonderfully talented Adam Young. Today is, as we have come to expect, no different. With the release of his new song "Verge" featuring Aloe Blacc, I once again am made aware of exactly why Owl City is - and likely will be for a while - one my favorite musical projects.

Of course a full album review of the new Owl City album will be here on the blog as soon as possible, for now, check out the new lyric video for "Verge" by Owl City.

The Shade (New Metric Song)

More or less, I have just one week left until my BA is finally a thing. Granted, there is a lot of work that I need to do before then, however, as one of the staples of this blog is music, I wanted to take a moment to mention the new single from Metric, called "The Shade."

This new song from one of my favorite bands has been on repeat for about 3 days now, and I literally can't get enough of it. If this song is representative of what their new EP or album will sound like, well let me just say that we are in for a treat.

Wow. Long time, eh?

I promise, I will start blogging again soon, I am required to blog for my school radio station, so most of my blogging energy goes to that. I will begin posting on this blog once again after this semester ends, but until then, check out KSSU's blog where I often write: kssunews.wordpress.com.

Thanks, and I will be back really soon!

KSSU Show #2 - 02/17/2015

It's a wrap on show number 2 here at KSSU! Like a song you hear during the show? Check out the playlist here on the blog! Any thoughts are appreciated! Thanks.

Name of Song / Artist / Album

Youth	Daughter	Wild Youth
Air Traffic	Owl City	Maybe I'm Dreaming
From All Sides	Lights	Little Machines
Warrier	Kimbra	Vows
Sick Muse	Metric	Fantasies
Trust	Panama Wedding	Parallel Play
After The Moment	Craft Spells	Idle Labor
Pick Up The Phone	Dragonette	Fixin to Thrill
Sleep Alone	Two Door Cinema Club	Beacon
Love Song	Sara Berellis	Little Voice

KSSU Show #1 - 02/10/2015

Hello all!

I just finished up my show on KSSU, Sacramento State Student Radio. As promised during the show, this is where I will be posting my playlists each week. You can check out artists and songs that you may have misses and chat with me about the show.

Any thoughts are appreciated! Thanks.

Name of Song / Artist / Album

Call It in the Air	The Cinema	Talking in Your Sleep
Years of War	Porter Robinson	Worlds
Same Sea	Lights	Little Machines
Black Sun	Kintsugi	Death Cab for Cutie
Let It Go	Bodyparts	Dragonette
Silhouettes	Swimming With Dolphins	Ambient Blue
Dead Air	Chvrches	The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1 - Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
All of the People	Panama Wedding	Parallel Play
The Unknown	Foxes	Glorious Deluxe Version
We're Not Alone (Killabyte Remix)	Virtual Riot	We're Not Alone
Fly (Killabyte Remix)	Protohype	Hear No Evil
Take a Walk	Passion Pit	Gossamer

I Missed January + Radio Show?

So, yah.... January came and went, and I completely forgot to do anything with the blog! To be fair, I was busy moving houses and working, and I honestly just sort of forgot.

In other news, however, it looks like I will have a radio show for the Spring 2015 university semester! That's right, I jot a "job" at KSSU, the college radio station for my university. When the details are finalized (in the next week, hopefully,) I will post all the details here, as well as Twitter. As of now, it will be a 1 hour show every week, and will be streamed online through a service called TuneIn, for which there is a website and an app. (Links to come)

Needless to say, I am excited to get started, and because the station is free form, there is no required playlist that I need to follow. Instead I simply keep track of the songs that I play and can pretty much play whatever I want, as long as I don't violate any FCC regulations for broadcast radio.

Because of this format, I plan of playing songs from a variety of genres and styles, however if you read this blog, you may find that the majority of music that I listen to falls roughly into the Alt/Indi category - fear not, however, as I will do my best to represent as many varying genres as I can.

As I said, I will post an official "Radio Show Announcement" when the time comes, to let you know of all the details and where/when you can tune in to the show. Until then, thanks for reading, and I will talk to you soon.

- David