Over The Moon For You Official Music Video Rachel Griffin

LIGHTS On Tour With Owl City - Winter 2010!

LIGHTS will be touring with Owl City starting the new year in 2010! Ticket info coming soon, stay tuned!

LIGHTS + Owl City = <3 !!

Tour Dates:

January:
January 21, 2010 - Kansas City, MO - The Beaumont Club
January 22, 2010 - Oklahoma City, OK - Diamond Ballroom
January 23, 2010 - St. Louis, MO - The Pageant
January 24, 2010 - Indianapolis, IL - Egyptian Room @ Murat Centre
January 26, 2010 - Madison, WI - The Majestic Theatre
January 27, 2010 - Cincinnati, OH - 20th Century Theatre
January 28, 2010 - Columbus, OH - Newport Music Hall
January 29, 2010 - Towson, MD - Recher Theatre
January 30, 2010 - Norfolk, VA - Norva Theater

February:
February 1, 2010 - Charleston, SC - The Music Farm
February 2, 2010 - Jacksonville Beach, FL - Freebird Live
February 3, 2010 - Tampa, FL - State Theatre
February 4, 2010 - Ft. Lauderdale, FL - Culture Room
February 5, 2010 - Orlando, FL - House of Blues
February 6, 2010 - Athens, GA - Melting Pot
February 8, 2010 - Birmingham, AL - Workplay Soundstage
February 9, 2010 - Baton Rouge, LA - Varsity Theatre
February 10, 2010 - Little Rock, AR - Rev Room

LIGHTS' Fall US Tour 2009!

Here are the tour dates for LIGHTS' Headlining US Fall 2009 Tour for The Listening!

Oct:

Oct 2 2009 - North Star Bar Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Oct 3 2009 - Sonar Baltimore, Maryland
Oct 4 2009 - Middle East Upstairs Cambridge, Massachusetts
Oct 6 2009 - Mercury Lounge New York, New York
Oct 7 2009 - Webster Underground Hartford, Connecticut
Oct 9 2009 - The Brillobox Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Oct 10 2009 - The Shelter Detroit, Michigan
Oct 11 2009 - Grog Shop Cleveland Heights, Ohio
Oct 20 2009 - Mohawk Place Buffalo, NY
Oct 21 2009 - The Mad Hatter Covington, KY
Oct 22 2009 - The Mixtape Café Grand Rapids, MI
Oct 23 2009 - House of Bricks Des Moines, IA
Oct 24 2009 - The Pageant St. Louis, Missouri
Oct 25 2009 - Jackpot Saloon Lawrence, KS
Oct 27 2009 - Triple Rock Minneapolis, Minnesota
Oct 28 2009 - Subterranean Chicago, Illinois
Oct 30 2009 - Hi Dive Denver, Colorado
Oct 31 2009 - Kilby Court Salt Lake City, Utah

Nov:

Nov 3 2009 - Troubadour West Hollywood, California
Nov 4 2009 - Bottom of the Hill San Francisco, California
Nov 5 2009 - Hawthorne Theater Portland, OR
Nov 6 2009 - El Corazon Seattle, WA

Hello (again)!

Yes, it's Official! I am dusting off the cobwebs from this blog, and will make some sort of attempt at creating semi-regular blogs! ;) I'll be reviewing albums, concerts, movies, games, and anything else I feel like, as well as generally waxing philosophic on whatever I'm thinking about at any given moment. This will be a natural extension of my (primary) Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/Firestarter_IT, to post anything that won't fit neatly in 140 characters or less! ;) So, pull up a comfy chair, sit back, and relax with your tasty beverage of choice and enjoy!

Fire out...

LIGHTS 'The Listening' Review

"The Listening" by LIGHTS is a Tour-de-Force Album

Review by: Thomas Luu 10/06/09
Edited: 07/11/10

LIGHTS' 'The Listening' is an emotional journey, spanning highs to lows, and everything in between. The power of the message is intense. Beyond the catchy, pop-synth backdrops, her words demonstrate a strength and vulnerability simultaneously, which is no small feat, to be sure.

LIGHTS' lyrical and musical mastery confirms the sharp intelligence, and deep introspection that lies behind her warm demeanor. She fearlessly proclaims on "Saviour" to "stand [her] up and maybe she won't be so small", coaxing the external listener to be her saviour, and lift her up so that she may spread her wings and soar, instead of oppressively keeping her down.

Take for instance, "Face Up". While it may be difficult to believe that someone as effervescent and stunningly beautiful as LIGHTS is, could ever experience heartache, loneliness, and despair, the truth of the matter is that she does, too, and that "the way you feel is something everybody goes through." The track speaks to the pain and extreme lows that we all feel at specific, as well at multiple, points in our lives. But more importantly, it gives the listener the best gift of all: hope.

Even more surprising, is that she, too, has struggled with a negative self-image when she queries, "How can you love me when I am ugly?" Except the 'ugliness' she speaks of in this case is more internal, rather than her outward appearance. The darkness from which these lyrics arise is undeniable, and can tend to be missed entirely by less discerning ears.

"Drive My Soul" has been a fan favorite ever since her self-titled EP release, and is often sung along by the audience at her concerts, beginning in her hometown of Toronto, ON, and now throughout the US cities that she's been touring through, first on this year's Warped Tour, and now on her first headlining tour in support of the release of the LP.

Its soothing melodies and pad beats conjures images of driving through a darkened, and treacherous road that is teeming with sharp curves. The imagery of her lyrics are visually palpable, from the opening line where, "it seems somebody put out the moon, [and] now the road is a mine field," to how she "feels bright when you stand near". Yet, the most significant lines for this reviewer are the chorus, in which she ponders, "who will drive [her] soul?"

There is also a remix of 'Ice' from LIGHTS' debut EP, that is a bit funkier, and includes some interesting-sounding syncopated hand-clapping.

"Pretend" is yet another beautifully crafted masterpiece. However, the "Reprise" version at the end, performed acoustically on piano, surpasses the synth-infused former version on the LP. The song portrays her longing for a simpler time, when she was "without the weight of the world". It also brings about nostalgic memories of those classic 80's commercials that children of the era grew up with from Toys 'R Us, in which children proudly claimed how they "don't wanna grow up", which is also synonymous with the Peter Pan Syndrome.

"Lions!" is perhaps the most charmingly geek girl-inspired song, where LIGHTS proclaims her love and devotion to World of Warcraft. Though not directly referenced, gamers familiar with the title would immediately pick up on the references. Her loyalty to WoW (as it's affectionately called among its gamers) is so fervent, that she had a tattoo of one of the swords in the game, The Twinblade of the Phoenix, emblazoned on her right forearm (pictured right).

Overall, there is not one song on the entire album that is less meaningful than any other. Each track is incredible in its own respective right. But the tracks are strung together so masterfully by LIGHTS herself and her production team, including Thomas "Tawgs" Salter & Dave "Dwave" Thomson.

The iTunes exlusive, album-only track, "Up Up and Away" is also a fitting ending after the physical CD's closing track, "Pretend (Reprise)", and manifests images of launching into the great unknown of space in an intergalactic spacecraft, not unlike the Millenium Falcon, or the Starship Enterprise.

The ancient Greeks often experienced catharsis, or a 'cleansing', as a result of a dramatic climax that causes a certain emotional release, during theatrical performances. This album is the modern-day epitome of that phenomenon.

By the final fade out, the "listener" has felt the entire spectrum of human emotion, from extreme melancholy, to serenity, and finally to pure, unadulterated joy, so that s/he will have been purged of all negative feelings from deep within. "The Listening" is one album that no serious lover of music should be without.

Rating: 10/10

Release Date: 10/06/09

iTunes Exclusive Bonus Track Album available at: http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewAlbum?id=333345573&s=143441. Includes the same tracks as the Amazon version, but also adds 'Up Up and Away', and also includes tracks from the "Saviour" EP, which was originally released on iTunes exclusively in September 2009 in the US.

Amazon Bonus Album available at: http://www.amazon.com/The-Listening/dp/B002Q6V8UC/ref=dm_ap_alb8?ie=UTF8&qid=1254825437&sr=301-2

The Standard Edition CD is available at Target, Best Buy, Wal-Mart and retailers everywhere.

For more info on LIGHTS, visit the following links:

Official Site: http://www.iamlights.com

Official Message Boards: http://board.iamlights.com

Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/lights

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/lights

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/lightsnoise

Sunshine

I caught an early morning showing of Sunshine at an area AMC Theatres and was pleasantly suprised to find out about their "AM Cinema" discount, which I guess is a true "matinee" (French for 'morning'). It's $4-6 depending on location; mine was $5 which is pretty darn good for DC! Anyways, onto the review...

Sunshine is classic sci-fi filmmaking at its absolute best. It's been a while since I've seen a pure sci-fi film, esp. one that is set in space. The visuals of the sun and Icarus I & II spacecraft were mesmerizing. Icarus is a fitting name, too, in reference to the Greek mythology. I think there's a depiction of Icarus on the giant solar shield as Icarus II approaches the sun. The story takes place in the not-too-distant future where our sun has started dying.

In a desperate attempt to save Earth, Icarus I is launched to send a nuclear-type device straight into the center of the sun, in order to jump-start it back to life. However, the mission is a failure and the crew never returns home. Seven years later, Earth has gathered enough material to create a second payload and assembles a new, internationally diverse team to carry out the same mission aboard Icarus II. During this mission, mysterious events occur which puts everything in jeopardy once again...

The ensemble cast was equally powerful. Chris Evans (from the Fantastic Four series) was surprising as the reluctant, but brave pilot. Rose Byrne (Damages) and Michelle Yeoh were the voices of compassion and reason among the elevated testosterone levels aboard the ship. And Cillian Murphy was impressive as the physicist.

Sunshine should definitely not be missed by any die-hard sci-fi fanatics!

Renaissance

I finally got Renaissance from Blockbuster Online (BBO) on Tuesday (I love getting new movies the day they're released, don't you?!). I've had it in the "Not Yet Available" section of my queue for a couple months now, so I've been anticipating it ever since I saw a trailer for it on a random DVD. It looked like a B&W, film noir version of A Scanner Darkly, which has similar animation techniques. But this was something completely different.

Renaissance is a unique blend of classic and contemporary film-making, and crosses multiple genres. It's been compared to Blade Runner, which is quite accurate, as well as impressive, considering that Blade Runner is one of the most popular sci-fi films of all time. Their styles are nearly identical. All the character archetypes are there: from the hardened lawman to the femme fatale. I'm going to pick this one up on DVD tomorrow!