Music Review: Young the Giant vs. Bearhands

Up-and-coming bands such as Bear Hands and Young the Giant tend to receive the short end of the stick in praise. But in this case both bands have managed to establish names for themselves nationwide.
Dylan Rau started the post-punk/indie rock band Bear Hands in spite of a romantic rival, which then inspired him to write nearly 70 new songs for the band. Joining up with Ted Feldman, TJ Orscher and Val Loper, the band began touring, which became a new way of life after the 2007 release of Golden EP.
Since then, the band has opened for groups including MGMT, Vampire Weekend, The XX and Les Savy Fav. They have also banded together with bands such as Passion Pit, We Were Promised Jet Packs and Manic Street Preachers on tours all over North America and Europe.
Upon the success of the most recent single “What a Drag,” the band has graced massive crowds at iconic festivals such as Reading, Leeds, Siren, Rockness and Forecastle. They also picked up a few shows in Brazil with fellow bands Chairlift and Telepathe while narrowly getting out with their lives with a bought of intestinal parasites.
Bear Hands is really starting to pick things up in the music scene upon their debut LP Burning Bush Supper Club, which took over a year to complete due to periods of mental illness and
permeating indecision. This album portrays the band’s eccentric levels of truth and relevance while playing on their beautiful and new sound.
Young the Giant was formed in 2004 in Irving, Calif., by lead vocalist Sameer Gadhia who then joined forces with Jacob Tilley, Eric Cannata, Payam Doostzade and Francois Comtois to form a band that has yet to disappoint. Members of the band decided to put their schooling careers on hold as they worked to build their musical careers.
In the winter of 2008, the band competed in an online contest for Sonicbids to open for the Kings of Leon at the House of Blues in Chicago. Just two months after the show, the band’s street cred had risen. The band then signed with Roadrunner Records in Aug. 2009.
In June of 2010, the band had played with bands such as Marina and the Diamonds, The Futureheads, Neon Trees and New Politics. In October of that year, the band released its self-titled debut album Young the Giant. Their hit single “My Body” reached number eight on the Billboard Alternative Songs chart.
The group’s combination of powerful lyrics and great musical arrangement truly made its first album a great success. The songs featured on the first album show great promise for what the next album has in store.
Consequently, both bands have a great sound, and the decision is rather hard to make. Bear Hands gains points for creativity in their lyrics, but vocally, Young the Giant has the upper hand. It would be easiest to make the decision of both being equally good.
In the end Young the Giant takes the title for being the best. Their music is something that can be listened to over and over again without feeling the aggravation that comes along with it. Young the Giant is dynamically more entertaining than Bear Hands. It’s up to the readers to decide. Who’s your pick for number one?

The Mortal Instruments Trilogy

Urban fantasy novels are generally hard to come by, but The Mortal Instruments series, also known as MI, surely sets high standards for authors wanting to get in on the action.

    The Mortal Instruments series is chalked full of witty and thrilling sequences. From Book One: City of Bones, I was hooked on the action-packed plot that always had something new to offer at the turn of a page. 

    As of now, the three-part series has acquired rave reviews, starting with Book One: City of Bones. The main character, Clary, is introduced to the world of Shadowhunters, a race of super-humans created to drive demons from our world. 

    Clary gets a major reality check when she is almost killed by a rather horrendous monster sent by Valentine, a powerful Shadowhunter who was thought to be dead who is presumably after her mother. It is then, when Clary realizes that she too, is a part of this race and works with the Shadowhunters to find Valentine and her mother.

    In Book Two: City of Ashes, Clary wishes  for her old life back, but at this point in the game, it is already too late. She has found her mother who has been put in a mysterious coma, and she also realized that the Shadowhunter, Jace, that she fell in love with, is her new-found brother.

    Both she and Jace discovered that they are Valentine's children. At the same time, Clary's friend Simon is turned into a vampire  and is captured by Valentine to bait Clary. Valentine's intents are more obtrusive than many people thought, and Valentine intends to sacrifice Simon to make the Mortal Instruments his forever. 

    Finally in Book Three: City of Glass, Clary manages to challenge her newfound magical skills to penetrate the walls of the Glass City in Idris, the homeland of Shadowhunters. Clary, however, is not supposed to be in the City of Glass considering the fact that it is the only place in which she can find a cure for her mother.

    Valentine attacks the city and destroys the demon towers that set the barriers that prevented the demons from entering.   It is there that Clary begins to overcome her fears and becomes a true Shadowhunter. 

    The MI series balances a hint of romance with the combination of extravagant fighting sequences that keeps the readers on the edge of their seats.  

    Everything from book one to book three comes together in what was thought to be the final installment of the series. In March 2011, Book Four: City of Fallen Angels, will be released.

    But the excitement for the MI enthusiasts does not end there. There is talk of The Mortal Instruments movie release in 2012, and production will be underway soon.

Dark and suspenseful novel doesn't disappoint: Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly

Two girls separated by two centuries. Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly seeks interest with a fantastic twist between two different time periods. The thick plot line, is filled with dark and suspenseful events on every page.
Andi Alpers is on the verge of a mental breakdown: again. She is like any typical teen with family problems and being mad at the world. She hates her father for leaving, is angry at her mother for not coping, and is suffering from a broken heart upon the loss of her younger brother, Truman.
Her pain and rage is beginning to defeat her as she is about to be expelled from a highly prestigious private school in Brooklyn Heights before her father steps in. Now Andi is forced to travel with her father to Paris for winter break.
Alexandrine Paradis lived 200 years ago. She kept a diary where she recorded her desires to grace the stages of Paris. But after a dismal encounter with a doomed prince of France cast her in a role she did not want, nor could she escape.
When Andi finds Alexandrine’s diary, she feels some sort of connection to the words written in it and is on the verge of obsession. There’s a sense of comfort in Alexandrine’s words that distract Andi in the frail pages of the diary.
Andi is caught in such a trance from Alexandrine’s diary, that on a midnight journey through the catacombs of Paris, Alexandrine’s words come to life, and the past suddenly becomes scarily ominous.
Revolution was quite possibly, one of the best books I have ever read. Donnelly has yet again released a truly exceptional novel. She has skillfully weaved the stories of unforgettable characters Andi and Alexandrine as they explore life, loss and the pain and power of love. Revolution vividly depicts the never ending struggles of the human race.
I highly recommend this novel to anyone looking for a dark and depressing, but uplifting story. Although parts of the novel get too emotional, I truly believe that the novel is a breath of fresh air and that it’s story is truly one of a kind.