Here’s What You Missed: The Soundtrack

Posted on September 21, 2017 by Amelia M.

I started with the best intentions of putting together a summer recap full of the roadtrips, life changes [I moved!], weddings, and events I went to. Which would maybe be followed by a brief summary of a few concerts I went to. But the concerts took over and here we are. Consider this a prequel to my summer recap. So stay tuned people who loved my instagram stories featuring full of long clips of muffled music and blurry lit stages off in the distance. THIS ONE’S FOR YOU.

Ogden Twilight: Oh Land/ Wild Belle/ The Shins/ Miike Snow

I made the journey to Ogden three times this year for Oh Land/ Wild Belle, The Shins, and Miike Snow. Every concert meant lucky slice pizza and a visit to my favorite brown vinyl clad car of the frontrunner. Probably the most memorable train ride was when a kid eavesdropped on me giving a summary of an L.M. Montgomery book which somehow led to us adopting him for the night. Although I doubt he is reading Blue Castle right now, which is a shame because it’s a great read.

The Shins was sold out and amazing.

Salt Lake Twilight: Little Dragon/ Cat Power/ Solange

Twilight was it’s usual madness. Little Dragon was wonderful and had crazy costumes and lighting as well. Solange was life changing [duh].

Little Dragon featuring her crazy neon veil.

But first, Cat Power. I read somewhere that everyone who’s been to a Cat Power show has a crazy story to go with it. I did not fully understand this until I saw her perform. She would start songs and change her mind. Constantly adjust, unsatisfied with the sound and the stage. In between the starts and stops she would apologize to the crowd. But no apologies were needed. Despite being the was the only one performing [not a single backup singer or band member to be seen], she filled the stage, switching between her guitar and piano. Her voice was less polished, but more powerful. And right when we needed it she spoke from her heart and gave us the pep talk we needed.

Solange almost didn’t make it due to weather delays, but once she was there any inconvenience was totally forgotten. Everything about the show was captivating. Her voice, the backup dancers, the arrangements, the band. At one point she and her backup singers just screamed into the microphones and somehow it still came out music. Magic.

No bad days when Solange is in town.

Red Rocks/ Father John Misty

We travelled all the way to Colorado to see the infamous Red Rocks venue and it almost didn’t happen. On the way there a semi truck caught ON FIRE and blocked all the lanes. But we persevered through the standstill traffic, roadside “bathroom” stops [things got real], and made it just in time for the show. Red Rocks was gorgeous and the perfect venue.

Us waiting in stopped traffic.

Also us waiting in stopped traffic. IT WAS A ROLLERCOASTER OF EMOTIONS.

Red Rocks!

HAIM/ Red Butte

One of the highlights of the summer, this was an amazing show [“Right Now” is still playing in my head]. We walked in thinking most of the spots were taken, but ended up in a little corner right at the front. Not only were we up close and personal for the drum solos and giant cricket intruders, but we got to be a part of their mass high five/ running to the crowd at the end. The cherry on top was their cover of Shania Twain’s “That Don’t Impress Me Much”, which if you have listened to I highly recommend [check it out here].

30 Seconds to Mars/ Muse

This was an unexpected end of summer treat thanks to my friend Mindy, who last minute offered me a ticket. Jared Leto was a presence to be reckoned with. Muse performed a flawless, seamless set with incredible lighting design and projected graphics. None of which turned out in my photos, so you’ll just have to trust me ok?

Currently: reading Madam, Will You Talk? [my book club book for the month]

Favorite Things

Posted on October 20, 2016 by Amelia M.

Here are some of my favorite things lately:

Festival and Fair things

September brings many events. And many foods.

Greek Festival

Close up of the Greek pastries.

Utah State Fair! I recommend the sprinkle dipped ice cream cone or the fried Oreos.

Gilmore Girl things

For the 16th anniversary of Gilmore Girls and in anticipation of the upcoming revival, 200 coffee shops around the country turned into Luke’s Diner for the day. There were two such “diners” in Salt Lake. I missed out on the merch, but I did get to see the sign. The shop was also playing Gilmore Girl episodes on a projector.

Stranger Things

If you haven’t watched Stranger Things yet it deserves some screen time. Some friends of mine had a Stranger Things party and it was a-mah-zing. I loved seeing everyone’s costumes. We even had a friend make a great demogorgon mask.

Not pictured: Short hair eleven, demogorgon, Will’s house, and Toothless.

Barb stole the show [typical]. My “Barb” was more of an homage to what Barb would wear in present time.

SERIOUS BARB FACES. DON’T UNDERSTIMATE A BARB.

Dine O’ Round things

If you haven’t heard of Dine O’ Round it’s basically one time a year where the restaurants of downtown Salt Lake City do special deals/meals. It lasts about two weeks, which trust me, is enough time to do some serious damage.

Dine O’ Round led me to some new places this year, including Taco Taco.

Obsessed with this Taco Taco decor.

I also visited an old favorite, Gourmandise.

Musical things

This was a great show! Now I’m extra-excited for the live action movie to come out.

These were also great [albeit very different] musical shows.

Tegan and Sara! I love them. I’m glad I got to see them [again]. Caity has been with me to witness the magic both times!

Couldn’t leave Tegan and Sara without this jacket. I mean, c’mon.

Grouplove <3

Cute animal things

Cute animals are kind of a given when it comes to things people love. However, even if you think you’ve seen it all, I recommend you look at this prissy_pig on instagram. These tiny little pigs in pajamas KILL ME. YOU’RE WELCOME.

Ice cream things

I’m obsessed with this flat, Roll With It Creamery ice cream. The only problem is I have to go to Provo to get it.

Fall color things

Finally, what kind of list would this be if I didn’t talk about the colors changing? One of the best parts of living in Utah is experiencing fall here.

Currently: Getting in the October mood with some Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Hope you’re having a good fall, full of your own favorite things.

Spring City

Posted on July 4, 2016 by Amelia M.

I spent my Memorial Day weekend [Is it bad to wait until July to post about Memorial Day?] visiting the itty bitty but oh so charming Spring City [If you want to know more about this little artist haven check out House That Lars Built’s guide here]. They were having their annual home tour. I always love looking around people’s homes, plus these homes are pretty much all historic landmarks and many of them belong to artists, so I was very happy.

This was one of my favorite houses. I loved the way they put everything together. The next photo of the wallpaper is also from this house [one of the bathrooms].

This wins the “Favorite wallpaper” award. I know pineapples are trendy right now, but I’m 100% on board with this trend.

It helped that we were also there on a beautiful day. It rained for a bout 5 minutes, but other than that it was sunny and gorgeous.

This house was especially interesting because the caretakers gave you a little tour as well. Although it was also very, very small. It’s hard to imagine living there full time.

Not technically a home, but still a great stop on the tour. This church looked even better on the inside, but alas no pictures were allowed.

We also met some of the sheep of Spring City.

We also supported the city by buying lunch from the youth group [for their upcoming camp trips] and selecting some cookies and tiny pies from the bake sale. It was fun getting to know the small town side of things.

Also, please note, if you had any doubt about the picturesque quality of things, actual white picket fences may have been involved in this tour.