Collective media haul (books, CDs, DVDs)

Time for a different type of shoplog! These past few weeks I haven’t been very active on the make up and clothing buying front. I found myself more in record stores, book shops and on Amazon than in H&M, Zara or Sephora. I am not really going to concerts now because I’m simply too busy and that’s why I have been interested in buying some more CDs again. I was looking to buy a few favorites to add to my collection, but also a few new ones that I hadn’t heard before. My local record store stocks some awesome music and I have made some great discoveries based on their recommendations. I will explain the rest of my purchases along the way. Each item will come with a small description if need be.

CDs first as there are more of those than anything else.

Justin Timberlake – The 20/20 Experience Deluxe edition

Orlando – The Early Warning Company

Ponderosa – Pool Party

These three are quite possibly my 3 favorite purchases in this shoplog. My oh my, what great music. Orlando is a small up and coming Dutch singer/ songwriter band with great songs that are a tad cute and a tad sad at times. I simply love the leadsinger’s voice and I saw them live in January as part of the Peel Slowly and See showcase organized by the aforementioned local record store. I loved them then and I also love their CD.

I bough Ponderosa on a whim while buying some other CDs you will see below. I basically bought it based on the awesomely colorful artwork. When I listened to it for the first time I instantly fell in love with the shoegaze-y type music and overall relaxed vibe of their songs. And what can I say about Mr. JT? I have already been raving about his new music ever since the Suit & Tie video was released and I love the album equally. Don’t Hold the Wall is by far my favorite song, but I’m loving the entire album.

Bob Dylan – The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan

The Velvet Underground – Peel Slowly & See

Two classic albums that were still missing from my collection. If you don’t know about these two names from Rock history then I suggest you google them. Bob Dylan is simply amazing and The Velvet Underground may not be super duper famous but has most likely been as influential in music as The Beatles or the Rolling Stones.

Lana Del Rey – Born to Die (The Paradise Edition)

Chromatics – Kill for Love

Frank Ocean – Channel Orange

Don’t shoot me now. Yes, I bought Lana Del Rey’s album. I am totally late hopping onto that bandwagon, but I simply didn’t start liking her music until I heard Summertime Sadness. That’s when I gave her music a proper listen and realized I really like it. Chromatics and Frank Ocean are two 2012 music favorites, be it late ones, so I hadn’t had a chance to buy these yet last year. Chromatics has a 80s new wave feel to it with lots of electro influences. Frank Ocean is the best thing that happened to R&B in a long time. His voice is perfection and the lyrics are fun, be it a bit cheeky at times.

Foxygen – We are the 21st Century Ambassadors of Peace & Magic

Lord Huron – Lonesome Dreams

I saw both of these albums sitting on the shelves at my record store and was curious to hear them. I already new Lord Huron and I liked what I had heard so far, so that wasn’t too much of a gamble. Foxygen however is a different story. I hadn’t even heard of them. Or so I thought. When I started listening I instantly recognized the 2nd song on the album and new I had to have it. Fusing together every great sound of the 60s, from The Beatles to Bob Dylan to The Rolling Stones infused with a healthy dose of rock vocals a la Dave Grohl, this band sound old and new all at the same time. Ingenious!

Tara Stiles – This is Yoga (4 DVD set)

The Twilight Saga Breaking Dawn Part 2

James Bond Skyfall

On to DVDs. I have added one or two days of home exercises on top of my days at the gym/ dance class. I had been using youtube videos but the commercials there started to drive me nuts. When I saw Amazon UK sold the Tara Stiles DVD I hesitated no longer and bought the full set. The best part: starting tomorrow April 1st, Tara Stiles will function as a ‘personal trainer’ for a month with scheduled daily work outs using this DVD set.

Then two things I cannot get enough of: Twilight and James Bond. I’ve been a James Bond fan since I was a kid. I watched all the old ones with Sean Connery, Roger Moore and Timothy Dalton with my dad years ago (I also have them all on DVD) and when Daniel Craig took over from Pierce Brosnan I think that was for the better. I’ve been loving all three movies he’s been in so far, with Skyfall being the best one yet. My affection for Twilight is already pretty infamous by now so I won’t delve into that too much. All I can say is: who’s in for a Twilight marathon?

Ilana Gershon – The Breakup 2.0

John Niven – The Second Coming

Stephen Chbosky – The Perks of Being a Wallflower

Jonas Jonasson – The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed out of the Window and Disappeared

Books! I cannot get enough of books. They are my lifeline to sanity when times get hectic and buys and I’m in need of an escape of my daily cumbersome life. The first book I HAVE to read as it’s for my thesis, but be honest, would you mind reading a book like that? The other three are all novels. I already read a book by John Niven which I loved, so I’m hoping this will be as much fun to read. I still want to watch the Perks film, but since I know it’s based on a book I’ve decided that I’d much rather read that than watch the movie. The last book is a gamble, but the blurb sounded intriguing which is why I bought it. All titles come with links to Amazon so you can purchase it or read up on it.

Charles Dickens – Great Expectation (adapted version)

Bernard Shaw – Pygmalion

William Thackeray – Vanity Fair

Apart from classic albums, I also got some classic books. However, I didn’t purchase these as some friends gave these to me. My friends’ Dad retired from his English teaching job last year and he gave her all his books. This included a long list of classic English literature and I was allowed to hand pick a few titles which I didn’t have yet. Out of the long list of books, these were the only three I didn’t have yet that I felt like adding to my collection.

Francois NARS – Make Up Your Mind

Alright so I lied. I did purchase something make up related: a make up book! I spotted this book in the largest Barnes & Noble in the world when I was in NYC last summer. They had every make up book imaginable, but after a critical browse through all the titles I was interested in, this one came up top. Too big and bulky for my suitcase I decided to leave it and hope that Amazon UK would sell it. They did and at almost half price compared to Barnes & Noble. The reason why I like this is because the pictures are shot face front, the models look realistic (not like Aliens like in the Express yourself book, also by NARS), and the make up looks are stunning, yet not too complicated. There are chapters on smokey eyes, pastels, color, skin, etc. And it comes with the infamous NARS overlays. Here’s what I mean:

Some pages from Make up your mind by NARS.

The Fashion World of Jean Paul Gaultier

And another white lie: I also bought something fashion related. I already mentioned having been to the Jean Paul Gaultier exhibition at Kunsthal last week and there they had this amazing catalog. Problem was: it cost 85 euros, which I thought a bit too steep. When browsing Amazon, I found they sold the exact same book at 2/3 of the price at the art gallery. My mom told me to get it on her as an early b-day present and so I was happy when it was also delivered super fast. It’s an amazing book with page long pictures, interviews with the man himself as well as some of the people he worked with and of course all the iconic looks. Here’s a few pics from the inside.

What’s the last book/ CD/ DVD you purchased?