Archive for September 5, 2011

I ♥ Snow Patrol

Posted by Jasmine McGee ⋅ September 5, 2011 ⋅ 1 Comment

Not quite sure why, but for some reason I find myself listening to this song on repeat today. Snow Patrol is awesome! I used to listen to “Open Your Eyes” a lot and always found myself trying not to get all emotional, it’s such a wonderful song. I’m not one for getting all emotional and I barely ever cry, but this song always touches me. It’s up there with Lifehouse “It’s You & Me.” Lifehouse has a lot of good songs, but “It’s You & Me” always gets at least one small tear out of me.

Snow Patrol is amazing! I hope to see them live one day, but until that day comes, I’ll keep falling in love with all there songs. The latest song “Called Out in the Dark” came out a few weeks ago, but I might as well post it. I been listening to it off and on, it’s a song worth checking out. It’s such a quirky video and the song is yet another great track by the guys of Snow Patrol.

©Jasmine McGee.ThinkSoul25. http://thinksoul25.com

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FST ft. Matt Cenere “Live it Up”

Posted by Jasmine McGee ⋅ September 5, 2011 ⋅ 1 Comment

I miss having a car. I miss just putting on some electro, turning the volume all the way up, and cruising around the city. In my opinion, that is what living it up is about. Just getting lost in the music and enjoying the nightlife. But when it comes to finding the perfect soundtrack for those evening drives and strolls, sometimes there is the challenge amongst choosing the right track with the right bpm( beats per minute.)

Some songs are too much for me, in terms of the bpm (beats per minute) and the beats used, but there are a lot of songs that capture that fast moving essence without the crazy bpm. Don’t get me wrong, I love fast moving music and high intensity driven tracks, but that’s why I have a drum & bass playlist. I like my electro music to be fast but not at the bpm of most dnb songs, why is why I’m starting to dig producer FST and his tracks.

FST knows how to create the perfect soundtrack for those late night drives. His music isn’t too fast but not to slow and overworked either, it’s just right. His latest song featuring singer Matt Cenere captures that fast past atmosphere but delivers with a moderate bpm. The song is called “Live it Up” and the video is also directed by FST. The message of the song is pretty awesome, cliche, but awesome! Seriously, Life is too short, so get out there and live it up! Stop the whining and complaining, just get out there and make your wildest dreams come true. You owe it to yourself, so make whatever you want happen. Go live it up!!!

©Jasmine McGee.ThinkSoul25. http://thinksoul25.com

Zombies & Chimera

Posted by Jasmine McGee ⋅ September 5, 2011 ⋅ Leave a Comment

The countdown to the first two major releases of the anticipated Fall 2011 game lineup is only one day away. I’ve been obsessing over zombies and closely following the news surrounding Dead Island, but I’m also looking forward Resistance 3. I know I’ve been blogging about my excitement about the impending release of Dead Island, but Resistance 3 is going to be one of those must-have games in my collection.

I’m a Sony kid at heart, so I try to support PS3 titles that aren’t multi-platform, which is why there isn’t a doubt in my mind I will be picking up Resistance 3 on Tuesday. While I’m still a fan of Xbox 360 and plan on getting Gears of War 3 for my 360, I tend to spend 85% of my gaming time on the Ps3. All the games I pre-ordered this fall (Battlefield 3, COD:MW3, and Dead Island) are all on Ps3. The only game I will be getting on 360 this fall will be Gears of War 3. Everything else will be strictly on Ps3, especially Uncharted 3 since it’s strictly PS3.

The first Resistance was pretty awesome and the second one was good (had flaws of course) but the third installment is a major graphical improvement. As a gamer, geek, and artist, I can be very picky when it comes to the graphic superiority of game. They have the capability to push a game to the limit, so why not? Even with the limited budgets and/or the lack of funding, I’m sure if the concept was great and a big developer got behind it, then a game can push that limit and provide us gamers with stunning visuals that aren’t just cut-scenes.

I used to get so upset when a game had breathtaking cut-scenes, but then gameplay visuals were nowhere in comparison to the vivid cut-scene that provoked me to play the game. I felt as though it was false advertising, sort of like wearing butt pads or layers of weaves hiding super short hair underneath, it just didn’t seem right to me. The game developers and engineers seemed to place more emphasis on the cut-scene in order to sell the game, but then the gameplay was lacking in epic proportions. Some games are still like that, but with so much next-gen technology, it’s a bad idea to focus on visually stunning cut-scenes and not implement that technology into real-time gameplay. Resistance 3 is one of those games that realized it’s flaws in the past and decided to step up the pace with a whole new look.

The graphics are visually stunning! I was playing the Online Multiplayer Beta yesterday and was blown away by the noticeable difference between the second and third installment in the Resistance franchise. The Chimera don’t look as cheesy as they often did in the second game and the environment is consistent. I’m not if they used a different engine (sort of how Mass Effect 3 is on a different engine than Mass Effect 2,) but whatever they did worked. I wasn’t too sure if I was going to buy Resistance 3 on the day it came out, but how could I not? Great graphics, a great story line, online multiplayer, and a few laughs while playing around with the pronunciation of Chimera.

Final Thoughts: Basically, I can’t wait to get my hands on Dead Island and Resistance 3. I’ve already read IGN’s review of Dead Island and even though it has some faults (all games do,) it promises to be an action packed game of zombie dismemberment and tactical survival skills. Zombies are always a good concept for a game, but I can’t leave out the classic concept of aliens, that’s where the Chimera come in. Dead Island + Resistance 3= Zombie & Alien madness!