Exhibitionism: The Rolling Stones | Saatchi Gallery, London

Music is more than just a few songs; It's more than a person or band performing on stage. It's a whole movement, an identity, a way of life, a way of dressing - an attitude. No band encapsulates this more so than the Rolling Stones.

The Stones have been around for well over half a century and they are still (in my opinion) rocking it. You only have to look at the incredible crowds that turned up to watch them in Hyde Park back in 2013 to see that they are still as popular as ever - the 65,000 tickets were sold out in three minutes. Very few (probably none) bands would be able to attract that big of an audience today let alone sell out over 60,000 tickets that quickly.

I have been a fan of the Stones for years. Their music is iconic and I'm sure their greatest hits album could be at least 5 CD's long. They have produced hit after hit with the likes of Brown Sugar, Jumpin Jack Flash, Don't Stop....... the list goes on.

Since April the Saatchi Gallery on the King's Road in Chelsea - one of my favourite places in London and the Rolling Stones' old haunt - has been home to the Rolling Stones' exhibition Exhibitionism. The exhibition takes you through all five decades of the Stones' careers showing everything from the clothes they wore (my favourite), to the recording process, live performances, they have even recreated the Stones' 1960s Kings Rd flat.

The day after Bruce Springsteen rocked Wembley we headed over to the Saatchi gallery to see this much talked about exhibition (after amazing brunch at Ca'puccino on the King's Road) and it did not disappoint. Technology was used in a really cool and interesting way in the exhibition with ipads allowing you to remix Stones songs along with a 3D screening of the Rolling Stones performing at Hyde Park in 2013. There was an amazing collection of tour posters and art work on display along with the coolest guitars and the most FANTASTIC clothes. Keith Richards has been a style inspiration for me for years so to get to see his, along with the rest of the band's clothes up close and personal was a real highlight for me.

Walking through the exhibition just emphasises the MASSIVE contribution the Stones have made to culture, not only in Britain, but across the world. I would go again and again and again. A must see for Stones fans but also for fans of music, fashion and culture.

RIVAL SONS [SCALA, LONDON 9/6/14]

Last Monday my friend Katie and I headed over to Scala at Kings Cross, London to watch one of my favourite bands, Rival Sons and it was one of the best gigs I have ever been to. Just incredible.

I first heard the band play on Dermot O'Leary's BBC Radio 2 show last April and I was instantly hooked. Jay Buchanan's voice is just magnificent and if you haven't listened to any of their stuff please do. For the last year I had been playing their stuff non-stop on Spotify and I had bought a few of their CD's. Basically my music listening was taken over my this band from LA so when I saw that they were playing down the road in London there was not two ways about it, I was going.

Scala is a great venue as it's so intimate which makes for an electrifying atmosphere. Jameson opened the show as the Rival Sons' support act and he was great. As well as being devilishly handsome his bluesy guitar playing and raspy vocals worked together flawlessly and I would honestly pay to go see him headline his own gig - so good!

The band opened with five songs from their newest album, Great Western Valkyrie. The first being the unmistakable Electric Man which was accompanied buy some awesome guitar playing from Scott Holiday. From the get-go the crowd was head banging, shouting and dancing. After every song the applause was almost deafening. Good Luck, Secret, Play the Fool and Good Things followed before an amazing rendition of my personal favourite, Jordan, from their 2012 album Head Down. It was spine tingling stuff.

With the high tempo Gypsy Heart and the newest single Open My Eyes the crowd was sent home with an amazing and equally emotional rendition of Face of Light. 

Wow. When we walked out of the gig towards the tube we couldn't believe what we had just witnessed. Two weeks before, both of us were at Finsbury Park for the Arctic Monkeys gig and I can honestly say that the Rival Sons gig was better. Controversial? Maybe. Truthful? Definitely.

LONDON DAYS

Since moving to Royal Holloway two years ago, I have taken central London being only 19 miles away for granted. My friends and I would just pop in and basically go to the same old place, you know the obvious places - Oxford Street, Westminster etc and I began to get bored of the city. My mum would come up to stay and she would just be fascinated and excited by the whole hustle and bustle of the place. She would love the tourist filled Selfridges and would just enjoy the fact that we were in London at the heart of civilisation rather than in the middle of nowhere with but fields to keep us company which is what we're normally used to back in Wales.

However, this all began to change (although Westminster is still one of my favourite places in the City). Days were spent discovering the city with friends, family and on my own (I quite like going around London on my own). We would have mulled wine and chorizo and rocket baps in Borough Market during christmas time after watching novice ice-skaters fall outside the tour of London. Brunch was eaten after a morning of strolling around Notting Hill and Portobello Market. I began to scratch the surface of London, the real London that is, the London far from Oxford Street.

Last week my friends and I decided to get all touristy and head to a few museums and galleries that are in the city. What's great about the museums and galleries we went to which were the British Museum, Tate Modern and National Portrait Gallery, is that they are all free. In fact the majority, if not all, of the museums and galleries within London are free so go and explore! We spent hours in the British Museum strolling through centuries of history that varied from the Enlightenment to Asia, Europe and my favourite, the ancient Egyptians. The Egyptian exhibition was extremely popular and you had to push yourself through groups of people in some sections but that didn't take away from the magic of it all. We were able to see and to read about actual mummies and their tombs. I know that I am a history student so this might interest me more than others but seeing coins or jewellery that were made in 400BC just blows my mind.

If modern art is your thing then the Tate Modern is for you. We strolled through  4 floors of free exhibitions with varying opinions of the art that we saw. On the top floor there is a great view of St Paul's which I urge you to see if you ever visit the Tate. There was a Matisse exhibition on when we visited but you have to pay to see that exhibition but from what I have heard, it is well worth the money.

The David Bailey exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery has been on the top of my to-do list for a very long time and since exams are finally over I headed over to Leicester Square last Saturday to witness the cool photographs for myself. This specific exhibition was £12 for students and it was well worth the money but there are plenty of exhibitions throughout the gallery that are free. With portraits of artists, african tribal figures, rockstars such as the Rolling Stones and models like Kate Moss the whole experience was awesome and I am glad I got to witness it before the exhibition finished last Sunday.

After a bit of lunch we roamed around Shoreditch in East London and it was great. Brick Lane was filled with Indian restaurants, underground vintage warehouses and vinyl sales. We roamed around Spitafields market where we sat, had a coffee and watched the world go around. While exploring the area we came across Rough Trade which is a famous and very awesome record shop and it is in here that we discovered their photo booth so obviously we had to have some photos taken :) I have to say I really enjoyed my first proper taste of East London and I am looking forward to another trip of East London exploration.

So the next time you head to London, steer away from Oxford Street, just jump on the tube and get off at a random station because I am sure you will find treasures in every corner of the city. Also, when you walk around the city you come across some spectacular architecture and some stunning houses. My friend and I would regularly stop and look at flats and houses and their great doors - massive strong doors which just makes you want to own a flat or a house in central London. If you are a lucky person and are looking for luxury apartments in the city then be sure to check out Redrow London :)

I'd love to know where your favourite London spots are - tweet/intagram me @lisagwawr and use the hashtag #LoveLondon :)

ARCTIC MONKEYS FINSBURY PARK 24.5.14

I think it was less than a week after seeing the Arctic Monkeys in Cardiff back in November of last year that I had already bought tickets to see them at their Finsbury Park gig. The Monkeys are definitely the band of our generation and seeing them live now is totally different to when I first saw them back in 2007 - which is a great thing.

There is no doubting that Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not & Favourite Worst Nightmare are two of the best albums from the last decade and with songs such as Dancing Shoes, Fake Tales of San Fransisco, Brianstorm & Fluorescent Adolecence it is obvious why. However, their  2009 and 2011 albums Humbug & Suck it and See respectively, despite one or two songs such as Don't Sit Down 'Cause I've Moved Your Chair, didn't connect with their audience as much as AM has.
Since AM's release last year it has just exploded and their new live set that is filled with most of the tracks off the new album feels as comfortable and familiar as any of their hit-filled shows.

Armed with coats and umbrellas we headed on the tube over to Finsbury park last Saturday ready for an evening filled with great music. It all began at half 5 when Royal Blood came on to the stage. I had never really heard much about this Brighton duo but wow, they were awesome. Personally I felt that they were the best support group out of the three that performed before the main act came on stage. Their heavy rock sound made from just a simple bass and drum duo was insane and I have certainly added all of their songs to my Spotify playlist. Miles Kane was next, I had seen him once before as he was the support at some gig I went to which I can not for the life of my remember but despite one or two songs he was not all that great. I much preferred Royal Blood. Tame Impala were the penultimate act on stage at Finsbury and at this point we had made our way to the back of the crowd where we had THE best view of the stage as we were perched on a little hill and we had loads of room to dance/head bang and chat to random people. Tame Impala's tracks would be awesome to put on in the house on a sunny relaxing day when you just want to chill.

Just as the sun was setting the thumping sound of Do I Wanna Know sounded out around North London and Alex Turner and the band came on stage to perform to over 30,000 people. Their setlist was once again very awesome and I must say that I think my favourites from Saturday was Brianstorm because everyone just went mental, Dancing Shoes, Arabella ... actually I could go on forever. Although, there is no denying that finishing the show with R U Mine was genius and a great way to leave the crowd pumped as tens of thousands of us queued to get on the tube back to our homes after yet another awesome, mostly rain free, Monkeys gig :) Oh, and did I mention that there was a Last Shadow Puppets reunion during the encore ;)

SVENGALI MOVIE PREMIERE

Last Monday while in the library (as per usual) I got an e-mail from Universal saying that I had won two tickets to the Svengali premiere in Shoreditch, East London. I never win anything so this was a bit of a surprise! A few weeks before I had preordered the soundtrack to the film as it looked (and is) immense. It consists of everyone from Jake Bugg to The Stone Roses and The Pogues (I mean whats not to love). Anyway, after inviting my friend Sophie to come with me (she was incredibly excited - I mean seriously exited!) we began the journey to Shoreditch after a full morning of lectures on Tuesday.

It's fair to say that we had no idea what to expect when we arrived. It was not a massive premiere like the ones you see at Leicester Square but it was still an awesome experience. After being ticked off the guest list we headed up to the fourth floor of the Rich Mix cinema where all the photographers and interviewers were. Its a bit of an understatement to say that we felt like fish out of water but soon enough we felt like we could attend premiers every week (I'm sure there's a job where you can do that - I need it!)! Both Sophie and I just stared at everyone (not in a creepy way might I add) but we were just trying to take everything in. Alan McGee, Oasis' former manager, was just chilling by us for a while (I mean...!) and before entering the cinema to watch the film we got to meet the two main characters of the film - Dixie and Shell - Jonny Owen and Vicky McClure. This was cool. They were both so so nice and Jonny is from Wales so we had a little talk about the home land :)

The film was really cool and the story was very sweet. How could you not like a film where Martin Freeman (the Hobbit and Sherlock) dresses up as a Mod with incredible purple glasses which I seriously need in my sunglasses collection. Matt Berry from the IT Crowd and Huw Stephens (radio 1 DJ) also make appearances and its safe to say that the film is not short of laughs but also quite poignant moments. If you can, I highly recommend that you go see this film, or at least buy the soundtrack.

What an awesome experience - thanks Universal!

Watch the trailer //

LONDON ALL GIRLS SKATE SESH //

Wow, the last week and a half has been sooooo busy its ridiculous - but a good ridiculous. It all started last Friday when I headed in to London for an all girls skateboarding session in BaySixty6, which is in the Notting Hill are of London. I got by first cruiser board for christmas around two years ago and instantly fell in love with the whole skate scene, attitude and also just the sport in general. I spent my downtime youtubing different skate edits and I especially loved the surfer vibe of Penny videos and other cruiser companies. Last christmas however I bought a traditional skateboard with the hope of becoming the next Penny Oki, or female Tony Hawk (one can dream).

Being in university kind of limits the time that I have to skate and especially as a beginner I didn't really want to embarrass myself in front of the tens of houses filled with families and students that surround the area where I practice. As a result, one evening a few weeks ago I e-mailed different skate companies and sites asking for information on female skate sessions and one women replied informing me of a London girls skate group that were organising an event in West London for skaters of all abilities. So with great fear I hopped on the tube with my board (which was a great conversation started btw) and arrived to find around 30 girls ready to skate - which was awesome although terrifying. One very kind woman helped me a lot and I learned to skate both up and down ramps and even attempted a few drop-ins which I think is pretty good for someone who has only properly skated a handful of times (excluding cruising). The session was for two and a half hours but I left a bit early in order to get back in time for my mam to arrive to spend the weekend with me.

They tell you to do one thing a day that scares you and I definitely did something that terrified me last friday but I am soooo glad that I did it. So even if your scared of doing something, like I was, pluck up the courage and do it anyway because you'll regret it if you don't.

BOROUGH MARKET // LONDON

As you have most probably noticed I haven't been a very good blogger over the last month or so but I guess that's what being a History student does to you - you just don't have that much spare time but I'm not complaining because it is uni after all and you're supposed to do work (although 10 essays of 2,500 words in one term might be pushing it a bit!). But now it's christmaaaaaaas and I'm home for a month so it's time to get the blog back on track. 

A few weeks ago I jumped on the train to central London to meet my parents who were down for the weekend. They were staying in a nice hotel right next door to Buckingham palace so I got there reasonably early to have breakfast with them at the hotel. Scrumdidlyumptious! Once we had let the food settle a bit we began our day around London town. First stop was Tower Hill and a walk over Tower Bridge to Borough Market. After getting a bit lost we finally made it and my oh my was it busy. We should have guessed really with it being a Saturday close to christmas. Despite having to push our way through crowds of people we got to see/smell/eat many different foods and I had a particularly yummie Chorizo roll for lunch. If you know me at all, you'll know that I love me some chorizo! In the middle of christmas trees, wreaths and minced pies we found a little place which sold the most delicious mulled wine and each of us had a cup to warm us up on the cold winters day. Having decided that we'd had enough of the crowds we began our walk to Covent Garden, but not without popping in to cute little Paul Smith shop on the way. 

Having trekked what felt like miles  along the Southbank we finally made it to an incredibly christmasy Covent Garden. Covent Garden is one of my favourite places in London and while we were there I picked up a laptop from Apple and my dad bought another coat from Barbour and we had a little drink in a pub to watch the last few minutes of the Rugby League World Cup Final before making our way to the London-Welsh centre on Greys Inn Road to watch the Wales V Australia match. Even though we lost it was a very cool experience being in the heart of London but surrounded by fellow Welshmen. 

A Vietnamese was had for dinner just around the corner from the London-Welsh centre before I made my way on the tube to Waterloo to catch a train back to uni. A lovely christmasy day in London :)

STEREOPHONICS // O2 LONDON 2013

Hello there, I know this is a bit late but  . . . better late than never!

On the 28th of November myself and Nicola headed in to London to go and watch the Stereophonics at the O2. Once my lectures had finished on Thursday afternoon I hopped hon the train to Waterloo where I met Nicola who was traveling from Cardiff. We had some time to spare before the gig so we had a quick stroll around Waterloo, Westminster and whitehall before raking the short tube journey to the o2 arena. I had never been to the O2 before and was surprised how big it was inside - it's genuinely like a town inside a marque! Surprisingly Nicola and myself found ourselves right up front which was just a little bit awesome! While waiting for the support to come on stage we talked to a few Phonics fans who had met Kelly and Richard a few times and one of them even received a wedding card signed by the band - how cool! 

Kitty, Daisy & Lewis were the support act and I had never heard of them before so was not quite sure what to expect but they were really, really good. With a rockabilly, swingy, bluesy, rock 'n' rolly sound they were actually superb. Check them out!

Before we knew it, Kitty, Daisy & Lewis were off the stage and the boys from Cwmaman were opening with Catacomb, a single off their new album, before belting out classics such as Local Boy in the Photograph, A Thousand Trees, Pick a Part That's New and one of my new absolute favourites, Been Caught Cheating. Throughout the whole gig myself and Nicola were frantically waving quite a sizeable Welsh flag in the air (apologies to those stood behind us!) and on numerous occasions (which made our night) Kelly, and Richard (the latter was stood directly in front of us) made eye contact with us and smiled. Arghhhhhh!! Throughout the whole gig I just kept thinking to myself - this is the most awesome thing everrrrr! 

I had seen the Stereophonics three times before - in the Millennium Stadium (2008 possibly or '05 can't remember), Cardiff City Stadium (2010) and V Festival (2013) but being so close to them at the o2 was just something else. Kelly's voice was even more amazing and Richard was, if it's even possible, more cool. With the band finishing the gig with the classic Dakota after a magical encore that was made up of Handbags and the Gladrags, I Stopped To Fill My Car Up and Just Looking it is safe to say that myself and Nicola had an extremely incredibly awesome time!