CD Review: Snow Patrol, "Up to Now"

Whether you love Snow Patrol, or have never heard of them before, they're debuting their first compilation album, "Up to Now" of their favorite hits from two of their past records. Although it's not their greatest hits, it's the ones that make them unique and prove their talent and mark in the music industry. The album includes thirty songs, with three brand-spanking new ones.

With tones that are romantic and sad, and somewhat hopeful at times, Snow Patrol comes with their own sound, singings of broken hearts and childhood memories. Their single, "Set the Fire to the Third Bar" is currently on the trailer for Dear John and taking the movie industry by storm with their music also appearing in Spider Man 3 and Grey's Anatomy.

"Up To Now" features a few singles that made the band famous, including "Chasing Cars" and "Chocolate." "Chocolate" was Grammy-nominated and one of the most hopeful and upbeat songs of the band, with unique and unusual lyrics about having a name he'd never choose and holding a lie underneath the roof of his mouth. The song sounds beautiful, but turns tragic as you realized he's lovesick for someone he's hurt.

"Just Say Yes" is an unusual track, with a different sound than the rest of the album. Again, it's romantic, but sounds like it could be played in a club and is a bit bland. It's with less instruments and more synthesizers, maybe showing the band isn't afraid to step outside of their own box and get creative, but instead it backfires.

A surprising feature of the compilation are the band's covers, including Beyonce's "Crazy in Love." They succeed in making it sound like the original, but in their own sound and style.

"Up to Now" is perfect for those looking to make a mix-tape to a lover, ex-lover, future lover, or friend. Snow Patrol allows itself to use many different instruments in most of their songs, but still seem to withhold outstretching their arms lyrically by keeping the songs restricted to romance as a melodramatic group of Irishmen.

Katie Cervantes

Live OC Magazine

www.LIVEOCMAG.com

Hot Spots in Hollywood

When clubbing gets old, and hitting up the best restaurant in Hollywood is a little overdone, there's always something new to be found in Tinseltown. Hollywood is known for it's best-kept secrets, including the best places to hang/eat out.

Sprinkles

9635 Little Santa Monica Blvd.

Cupcakes can be found on every corner on the West Coast, but in California they're the newest treat to tempt our taste buds. With flavors like apple pie, peanut butter cup, and Neapolitan, Sprinkles is a little hideaway in Beverly Hills with sprinkles from France and fun creativity.

Los Angeles Farmers Market

6333 West Third St.

This Farmers Market has been hanging around for over 75 years with quaint little shops, and other larger stores, like Zara's. There's salons, jewelry stores, fresh produce, and even a butcher shop. It's a great place just to roam around and dabble in a few of their jewels.

Hollywood Wax Museum

6767 Hollywood Blvd.

The Hollywood Wax Museum is home to faux celebrities who all look extremely identical to who their modeled after. Wax figures of the rich and famous date back to the 1940s and it's the first wax museum of the other related locations across the country.

Hollywood Park

1050 South Prairie Ave.

Even if it's just to wear one of those fabulous hats, attend a horse race at Hollywood Park for something different. Dress up and bid on a horse while you watch them race.

The Silent Theatre

611 N. Fairfax Ave.

The theatre is over 60 years old with vintage art deco and more films and art presented than just silent films. With visitors like Maurice Sendak (the author of Where The Wild Things Are) and comedy nights where Pee-Wee's Big Adventure is shown, there's always something different and interesting going on here.

The Arboretum & Botanic Garden

301 North Baldwin Ave.

Walk on the wild side in 127 acres of the Botanic Garden and enjoy unique plants and waterfalls you can't find anywhere else. In a city full of smog, it's refreshing and peaceful here with ongoing events, art classes, and art sculptures throughout the garden.

Katie Cervantes

Live OC Magazine

www.LIVEOCMAG.com

Movie Review: Leap Year

Amy Adams stars with Matthew Goode in Leap Year, a romantic comedy that may not be extremely original, but is still a hit for those looking to be weak in the knees. Anna, a girl who's ready to get engaged to her boyfriend Jeremy (Adam Scott), is let down when he doesn't purpose as she expected and leaves for a business trip to Dublin. She hears an old tale of women purposing during leap year to men in Ireland and decides to visit him and pop the big question.

She meets Declan (Goode), along the way who helps her through the typical romantic-comedy occurrences like cows blocking the road and Anna falling into mud. There's times when the cheesiness is a reminder that it's just a movie, but the film makes up for it with the cute Irish accents and the creative ending (for a cliched one, anyway).

Although there were times where the movie was predictable and the backdrops looked like they were used with Hollywood's chump change, there were twists that were creative and kept it interesting. The cinematography of Ireland was impressive, which added more to the romance and depth (of what there was) to the film. There was a lot of dry humor that worked well and Adams and Goode's characters had a lot of chemistry and believable sparks.

The ending may be predictable, but it's perfect for those that like romantic comedies and want to leave the theater feeling good and hopeful for their own future romances. If you're a guy trying to please his girl by seeing this for a date night, then don't go in expecting to be impressed or too entertained. It is, after all, a chick-flick.

Katie Cervantes

Live OC Magazine

www.LIVEOCMAG.com

(The Best) Places to Shop Online

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TOPSHOP.COM

When it's impossible to fly to Europe on a moment's notice to shop, there's Top Shop. They're reasonably priced, based in England and a little more upscale than your local Forever 21. They have everything from your hard-to-find floral leggings to trendy luggage. To TOP it off, students get 10% off all merchandise with over 300 new items featured each week.

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OOHILOVE.COM

Ooh I Love is a site where you can auction on high-end accessories, like Chanel purses or Marc Jacob wallets. What better way to snag a good pair of Dior earrings for some chump change? The items sell for unbelievably cheap (try $3.00), but of course, there's a catch. Customers have to purchase bids, which cost 99 cents a piece, with the bids in packages of 30, 50 or even 800. However, it allows you to own expensive accessories for normal prices and it actually works.

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ETSY.COM

It's no exaggeration to say that Etsy has almost everything imaginable for sale. Although this place is a hot spot for women, they offer tons of items that are all crafty and handmade. There are hundreds of vendors and one of a kind items that you can't find anywhere else. Plus, it puts money into independent artists' pockets.

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HALF.COM

EBAY is great, but the other site they run, Half.com, is even better. With deals you can't find anywhere else, you can get your favorite CD for a buck or a novel you've been dying to read for five. There's no annoying bidding involved, and plenty of sellers to choose from with different prices. However, the site strictly sells media and entertainment products.

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OVERSTOCK.COM

The name speaks for itself, Overstock.com is it's own empire with auctions, places to buy cars and even insurance, along with real estate and last season's pair of UGGs. There's an endless amount of products here, which is perfect if you have a lot of time and the patience to browse. Think digging through a Ross store, but only virtually. One thing the site offers is shipping that doesn't cost more than three bucks on any item.

Katie Cervantes

Live OC Magazine

WWW.LIVEOCMAG.COM