A work wardrobe for Autumn

This Monday I'm making the transition from unemployed graduate to working woman as I start a full-time job. Being a t-shirts and skinny jeans sort of girl I didn't have much in my wardrobe that fits the 'business casual' dress code that I'll be following so I've been trawling the shops to find cute pieces to wear to the office. A lot of the styles that are in this season tend to go one way or the other: half of the tops are sleeveless and the other half are cosy jumpers, neither of which are really what I wanted, so I was starting to despair a little. Luckily I was able to catch the bus up to Edinburgh today though and God bless Primark for having plenty of cute blouses and tops for me to choose from! Here's what I picked up (excuse the lighting and the blurriness of some of my pictures!):

Red checked Peter Pan collar t-shirt, £6.00

I thought this top was really cute, it's more or less a t-shirt so it's comfortable but it has a sweet tartan print and a Peter Pan collar which I really like. This style is available in another print, black with white swallows, but I thought this was more colourful and sophisticated.

Double pocket shirt, £10.00

I wanted a white shirt but not one that made me feel like I was back in my school uniform, so this is perfect. I thought the black details were really striking and I really like the gold buttons. 

Supersoft V-neck jumper, £6.00

I grabbed this jumper in both this deep red and black when I first entered the store but in the fitting room I decided to go for the coloured version, which looks brighter in person. I like this colour which comes around every Autumn and a jumper like this will come in handy for commuting on colder days.

Cut & sew top in grey, £7.00

There are variations of this top in most of the high-street stores, often in baby pink which white lace (which Primark also has) but I'm still a teen goth at heart so I went for the grey version instead. The lace has really cute daisies and even though the top is sheer I think it'll be quite warm for winter.

Sleeveless lace Peter Pan collar blouse, £6.00

This is my favourite of all the pieces I picked up today, it's just so pretty! It's hard to see from the picture but the top is white lace, front and back, with another Peter Pan collar. I'm already thinking about getting camisoles in different colours to wear underneath this. 

Classic canvas black shoes and black slipper shoes, both £6.00

The Chuck Taylor style shoes aren't for work but I had an old New Look pair which I just had to throw out and I wear them a lot so I needed a replacement. They're half the price of my previous pair, which themselves are half the price of a Converse pair so I'm happy with the bargain.

I don't wear pumps at all because I find that they don't stay on my feet. Over the last few days I've tried shoes on in almost every store in town and I couldn't find a pair that fit me at all. These slipper-style shoes are the best that I've found so hopefully they'll serve me well - if not I'll be off to work in pretty dresses and chunky boots like my 90s faves from Beverly Hills 90210!

Stretch cami in black, £1.80, & long sleeve stretch scoop neck top in slate, £3.50

A lot of the tops above are sheer so I picked up a black camisole to wear underneath - I'd have taken a white one too but there was only one size left and sadly it wasn't mine. 

I bought another of these long-sleeve tops on a previous visit in another colour (purple with black stars printed on) and it's serving me well so I picked up another in this more neutral shade today. 

There are lots of colour options for both of these styles, as well as vests and t-shirts, so plenty to choose from!

Lace trim socks, £1.00; invisible socks (2 pairs), £1.50; cotton rich socks (5 pairs), £2.00

I know this looks like a lot of black socks but I swear they're all different. I bought the 'invisible' socks last time I was in and I wear them a lot so it turned out that 2 pairs wasn't enough.

I didn't have any regular black socks to wear with my transparent rain boots or on days when I don't want my socks to be obvious so I picked up a plain pack.
Finally I was passing a sale basket when I spotted the black-on-black lace trim socks that I've admired for a while so I treated myself since they were on sale. I love the juxtaposition of the feminine lace with studded creepers or other thick shoes but I only have lacy socks in pastel and white shades so now I have something more goth to wear too.

I also had a look in H&M but I didn't see any clothes that I loved, just these cute necklaces:

Choker, £1.99 and necklaces, £9.99

I like to wear necklaces but most of the ones I own are band merchandise and they're not really work-friendly. I really like the 90s chokers that are back in style just now, I've been wearing one of the woven ones almost every day for the last few weeks so I wanted a little more variety. The necklace on the left is velvet with a little gold charm, they also had styles with different colours and charms but this was my favourite.

There were a couple of the sets of necklaces to choose from and I almost went for the other one which had different charms but instead I opted for the one above. The five necklaces are all separate but they go together: there's a choker, a diamante-encrusted eye on a leather string, a tiny arrowhead on a silver chain, a piece of turquoise on a braided leather string and a gold peace sign on a long chain. The four pendants are all really dainty which should mean I can wear them with anything and in any combination, and I really like them all so I think they were a good buy.

NME, free; Harpers Bazaar US edition, £4.95

Finally, although they're not clothing, I also picked up these magazines today. I'm not a city girl so I've not been able to get my hands on NME since it became a free publication so I'm looking forward to seeing the changes that have taken place since I last bought it.

I like to flick through the proper fashion magazines and make collages with my favourite pictures so every time I'm in Edinburgh I go into Waterstones to look at their magazine section - the Princes St branch is the only one I've come across that stocks magazines and they have a selection that I can't find anywhere else. They didn't have US Vogue, which I like at this time of year because it often has 1000 pages, so I went for Harpers Bazaar instead which is also thick with gorgeous pictures... plus it mentioned Kendall & Kylie on the cover and I unashamedly keep up with the Kardashians. I'm looking forward to flicking through both of these in bed later.

So now I think I have everything I need to start work next week, I'm excited about starting a new adventure especially after having been largely inactive since I finished Uni. Hopefully I'll still have time to blog, but if not at least you know I'll be well-dressed!

Music Monday: girls like girls and boys [N-Z]

Last week I shared some of the best male and female artists on my iPod whose names happen to be in the first half of the alphabet. Here's the second installment, featuring my favourites from letters N-Z:

Nine Inch Nails: I first became aware of Nine Inch Nails a decade ago when I started buying Kerrang around the time that they put out The Hand That Feeds, which is one of my favourite songs of theirs. Over the years I've listened to them a little more,
Nancy Sinatra: Nancy is one of the artists I've listened to most over the last couple of years, she's so versatile. Her songs go from the sweet, like 'Sugar Town', through feminist hits like 'These Boots Are Made For Walkin'' to sad songs like 'Bang Bang My Baby Shot Me Down'. My favourites are the duets she recorded with Lee Hazlewood, especially 'Some Velvet Morning', which is beautiful and unsettling.

Operation Ivy: I don't know a whole lot of Operation Ivy songs, not that there are many, but 'Knowledge' is basically my national anthem.
Olivia Newton-John: I don't have many O artists and I had to look at my iTunes to find one, but I chose Olivia because I went through a big Grease phase when I was young (doesn't every girl?) and I still love listening to the soundtrack.

Panic! At The Disco: I was really into Panic! when their first and second albums came out and though I've kind of lost track of their more recent material I still listen when I can. It doesn't matter how long it's been since I've last listened to it, the words to the songs on A Fever You Can't Sweat Out seem to be burned into my memory for all time.
Paramore: I almost chose PVRIS here because I think they're amazing too but when I consider how many times I've listened to the last Paramore album I had to pick them instead. I've always liked Paramore but their self-titled blew me away; I love the aesthetic of the 'Still Into You' video and the variety of sounds on the album, especially the soul of 'Ain't It Fun' and the cute ukulele sound of the interludes.

Quiet Riot: I had to go back into my iTunes to find Q artists since they're few and far between. I had a glam metal phase a few years ago and listened to their version of Cum On Feel The Noize a lot so they're probably my favourite of all the Q artists there are.
Queen Latifah: I've bought one of Queen Latifah's albums and not had time to listen to it yet, although I'm sure it'll be rad. Until then I have to give props to her performance in Chicago.

Refused: I'll lose points for this but I've never actually listened to The Shape Of Punk To Come even though I know how influential it is. I did download 'Liberation Frequency' and 'New Noise' about a year ago though and neither of them have come off my playlist since then, so I really should move Refused up my list of priorities!
The Runaways: The Runaways are so important to me, I love their albums and their solo work and the movies about them. My favourite is Lita even though she has a reputation for being a bitch, but her guitar work on 'Neon Angels On The Road To Ruin' is too good to argue against. I love Cherie Currie's voice and their whole persona, although I'm not a huge Joan Jett fan.

The Smiths: Morrissey came to play in my little home town in 2011 and I never went but after that I started listening to The Smiths and I've regretted missing the show ever since. His lyrics combined with the music of Johnny Marr are just magical and I love to listen to them. My favourite album is The Queen Is Dead, it has moments of joy like 'Vicar In A Tutu', heartwrenching songs like 'I Know It's Over', and the classic 'There Is A Light That Never Goes Out'.
Siouxsie & The Banshees: After being hooked on their cover of 'Dear Prudence' I started exploring the Banshees' back catalogue and discovered so many great goth songs. Siouxsie is a cultural icon and she completely deserves the hype.

Taking Back Sunday: As a teenage emo I've been interested in Taking Back Sunday since they put out 'MakeDamnSure', but over the last year or so I've been really into their album Tell All Your Friends. The Blackout used to cover a snippet of 'You Know How I Do' within my favourite of their songs so it makes me emotional every time.
Taylor Swift: I used to think Taylor Swift was a bit average until she put out 'We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together', and then when 'Shake It Off' was released I was confused again. I quickly got over it though and I've played the singles from 1989 on repeat all year, she's great.

U.S.U.R.A.: I only have 2 U artists on my iPod and I only know one song by this artist, the 1993 hit 'Open Your Mind'. It's a dance song that kind of sounds like what I imagine being on drugs is like, repetitive and a bit sinister. I found it while listening to the chart music from the year I was born, along with a whole lot of other great cheesy Eurodance which is my guilty (although I feel no guilt) pleasure.
Uffie: I can't remember where I first heard 'Ready To Uff' but I've been obsessed with it for years and years and I don't get how Uffie isn't as huge as Nicki Minaj.

The Vaccines: V is another letter I struggled with. I don't know many of The Vaccines' songs but I heard 'Teenage Icon' on a whole lot of playlists and eventually learned to love it.
The Velvet Underground: When I first heard Nico's voice I hated it but at the same time I wanted to hear more. My dad has all their albums on cassette and I'm glad because it means I can listen to 'Femme Fatale' while I read books on Warhol and Edie Sedgwick who I find fascinating.

When Reason Sleeps: I bought this band's EP on eBay because it was Sean Smith's band before The Blackout got big, and it's a weird set of songs. Some of them have completely unnecessary outros (one track is half an hour long and most of it is just the band messing about in the studio) and it's obvious that they just want to be Glassjaw or Lostprophets. However there's one acoustic song called 'The Glass Curtain' that I absolutely adore, so the purchase was worth it for that alone.
Whitney Houston: I love 80s music and Whitney is one of the most important singers of the decade. 'How Will I Know' is maybe my favourite but she had so many great hits that it's hard to say for sure; I wish she was still around.

XTRMST: XTRMST is the straight edge hardcore band put together by Davey and Jade from AFI who unexpectedly appeared last year with a stunning EP and then an album. I listen to their cassette whenever I'm pissed off and although it really forces the straight edge thing which I sometimes feel is too much I think they're amazing.
X-Ray Spex: It's a shame that Poly Styrene isn't still with us because she's a punk icon and I find stories about her so interesting. Germfree Adolescents is a great album which sounds like it could come out now and still be just as innovative.

Young Guns: I've been able to see Young Guns a few times and I think they're one of the best British bands around so I'm glad that they're doing so well in the USA. All three of their albums are excellent so if you're not already listening to them I'd definitely recommend you look them up.
Yeah Yeah Yeahs: I don't listen to this band much anymore but Y artists are hard to come by! Karen O is really exciting to watch and I loved their song 'Cheated Hearts' when it came out.

Zedd: I heard 'Clarity' in a shop and had no idea what it was but I went home and searched the lyrics until I found it. After that he put out 'Stay The Night' with Hayley Williams, a song I was completely obsessed with, and 'Break Free' with Ariana Grande who I mentioned last week. I'm looking forward to seeing which of my other favourites he'll collaborate with.
Zola Jesus: I heard the song 'Night' on a goth playlist and adored it. I don't know many other Zola Jesus songs but if they're all that good than I'm definitely a fan.

The 1975: I think this band are kind of overrated and I don't love all their songs, but 'Sex' is incredible so I still count myself as a fan of theirs.
2Unlimited: This is another group from my '93 Eurodance phase, and probably my favourite of the lot. I know it was a big hit that I'm just too young to remember but when I heard 'No Limit' for the first time I was amazed by how great it was. I also love 'Tribal Dance' and I'm kind of sad that this isn't the music that clubs play in 2015.

So there it is, my full alphabet of favourite artists. If I've left any glaring omissions let me know!

#NOTD: frosted purple ombre

Nail polish is the only make-up I wear so I like to experiment with different colours and textures. I have polishes in every colour of the rainbow but there are a lot of them that I rarely, if ever, use, so one of the goals on my Day Zero list is to test each of them out. My go-to shade in recent months as been Barry M's matte polish in Espresso, which is the black polish I used as a base here. I love the matte effect and it dries so quickly which is ideal for me because I usually manage to smudge my nails before they dry. The idea for this manicure was born when I opened the box of polishes under my bed and picked out one I hadn't used before, Frost from Nailed Polish by Sleek. I've never seen or heard of Sleek before but there was a bottle in the reduced to clear section of the charity shop I work at and at 49p it's not like I had much to lose if it didn't work out. 

As you can see from the bottle, the polish looks like it's going to be a shiny white shade and it didn't really show up on my bare nails. but when I brushed it over the chipped remains of last week's black manicure I was surprised to see that it turned my nail purple. After applying a base coat of the black polish I started layering the Frost shade over the top until it created the ombre effect you see above. I have to admit that I did screw up a little on the index fingers and the colour you actually see is a deep purple franken-polish I made years ago by adding a little purple to one of my black polishes, but aside from that the colour you see is from layering. By the time I got to my little fingers I was using half a dozen coats so it looks really thick and took a while to dry; it's now day four and the polish has started to crack and it'll probably chip off in big chunks tomorrow.

When I was done I felt like the darker nails weren't purple enough so I added a tiny bit of glitter to the tips which was harder than expected because my purple glitter polish had dried up - that's why it's not in the photo above, I threw it out immediately, but it was one of those cheap brands you find in bargain stores so I wasn't too upset about losing it. You might be able to tell from the picture that the glitter has lost its purple colour and turned silver really quickly. If I ever choose to replace it I'll probably pick up a Barry M glitter because it's much thicker and longer-lasting and I like my glitter polish to be as over-the-top as possible.

Finally, my very favourite nail polish discovery is the fast-drying topcoat, Mavala's Mavadry. I got this as a free sample and I was immediately amazed by how well it worked. It's such a small bottle though that I'm almost running out and it's not cheap to replace, so if anyone can recommend something similar but less pricey I'm all ears. I'm so impressed by it that I'm considering just buying matte polishes from now on and painting the Mavadry over them when I want shine, since both dry so quickly and look so good. 

Overall I'm happy with how this turned out although I don't think it's going to remain chip-free for much longer, but that doesn't bother me because it means time to try something new soon. I have 55 different coloured polishes to work through (54 now since I threw out the purple glitter) so watch this space!

Nail polishes used:

Barry M Matte in Espresso

Nailed Polish by Sleek in Frost

Mavala Mavadry

w7 Polish in Purple Glitter

Homemade deep purple

What I was watching while they dried: Freaks & Geeks ep 16, Smooching & Mooching

101 Things in 1001 Days, 1 year in

I wrote in July about my Day Zero list, in which I have 101 goals which I aim to accomplish in 1001 days, beginning September 1 2014. That means I'm now just over a year in, with 609 days remaining until the end of the 1001 day period. In the last blog I shared the 11 items which I had completed so far, and since then I have completed another six, with 25 more marked 'in progress'.

Now completed:

4. Attend my 100th concert
10. Meet up with my high school friends

15. Visit Edinburgh in Fringe season
This year I went to Edinburgh not once, but twice to see Fringe shows. I wrote a blog about the first of those trips here, and on the second trip I went to see The Addams Family Musical, a musical revue entitled Shitfaced Showtime, comedians Ed Byrne and Mae Martin, an improvised Sherlock Holmes play, a one-woman play called Bette Davis Ain't For Sissies and a dome cinema show, bringing the total number of shows attended to 11.




23. See a comedy show
As above, I saw two comedy shows at the Fringe Festival.

29. Go on a road trip

31. See a musical
Also at the Fringe, I saw both Grease and the Addams Family.

46. Visit London
49. Photograph a concert
51. Help sort through Granny's things
65. Volunteer for a charity
75. Buy a dress

81. Read 10 library books
I've read the following since I started this challenge:

1. How To Build A Girl - Caitlin Moran   

2. Hollywood Royalty - Gregory Speck

3. Not That Kind Of Girl - Lena Dunham

4. An Abundance Of Katherines - John Green

5. Life On Planet Rock - Lonn Friend

6. Fifty Shades Of Dorian Gray - Nicole Audrey Spector/Oscar Wilde 

7. Flappers - Judith Mackrell 

8. Getting Warmer - Carol Snow 

9. The Fall And Rise Of Gordon Coppinger - David Nobbs 

10. Letters Home - Sylvia Plath ed Aurelia Schober Plath 

92. Visit Wales

93. Visit five tourist spots in Edinburgh
In August I did the following:

 1. Walked to the bottom of the Royal Mile to Holyrood and Dynamic Earth
 2. Lay in the grass in Princes St Gardens
 3. Had an ice cream at the Grassmarket
 4. Browsed Armstrong's Vintage Emporium
 5. Attended the city's Fringe Festival

94. Write a letter to someone who has inspired me

95. Meet an online friend in person 
Although we'd been in the same spaces before we started talking online, I began talking to my friend Amber online at the end of last year and we officially met in March. I should have marked this one as completed before I wrote my last blog but missed it, and have checked it off now.

100. See The Blackout for the 50th time

Music Monday: girls like girls and boys [A-M]

There's not much point in me writing a blog about the new music I've been enjoying lately because basically the only song I've been listening to is the new Justin Bieber song, 'What Do You Mean?'. Instead, I'm taking a leaf out of my friend Charlotte's book (or should that be taking a page out of her blog?) and going on an alphabetical trip through my iPod, sharing my favourite artists, with a little twist. As I was growing up listening to mostly rock music I felt like my library was male-dominated, possibly because it's much rarer to find women in the genre, but now that my taste has diversified I think my iPod is more of a 50/50 split between male and female voices. With that in mind, I decided to put together a list which reflects artists at either end of the gender spectrum. Here's the first half:

AFI: one of my all-time favourite bands, and one of the most important to me. I started listening to AFI in 2006 when they released winter staple Decemberunderground. I've followed their career ever since, especially in 2013 when they released and promoted their latest album Burials, the darkest break-up record I've ever heard. Aside from those two albums, I'd recommend 2000's The Art Of Drowning which features my favourite song, 'The Days Of The Phoenix'. They haven't toured the UK since I last saw them in 2010, but as soon as they're back here I'll be down the front.
Ariana Grande: I thought Ariana was overrated until last summer when she put out the video for her hit single 'Problem', which had a 60s mod aesthetic that I adored. After that I watched a whole bunch of her interviews on YouTube and I was surprised to find her so entertaining with her foul mouth and flawless impressions of other pop divas. My favourite songs of hers are 'All My Love', the collaboration with Major Lazer that she recorded for the soundtrack of the last Hunger Games movie, and her cover of Mariah Carey's 'Emotions'.

The Blackout: the number one most important band in my life, even though they split up six months ago and broke my heart. I saw them live 50 times over the course of 6 or 7 years and had the best time of my life following them around. My favourite album is 2009's The Best In Town, the one that really sold me on the band, but their final EP Wolves is also amazing and so is more or less everything else that they did.
Beyoncé: I almost put Britney Spears here, but it's been about 10 years since Britney put out anything good yet Beyoncé just keeps getting better. I always liked 'Crazy In Love' but my favourite songs of hers are '***Flawless' and 'Partition', both from her 2013 self-titled album. I love to see huge artists championing feminism and sexuality, and Beyoncé definitely has some of the responsibility for the recent upsurge in women being able to tell the world that they feel good about themselves, which I hope never ends.

The Cure: They recorded so many goth classics that there's a Cure song to fit any occasion and I'm glad that I bought their Greatest Hits CD as a teen. My favourites are 'Lullaby', 'Close To Me' and 'Just Like Heaven', and I hope that I'll get to see them play live before they get too old to tour.
Cocteau Twins: I discovered this Scottish group a year ago and although I only really know a couple of their songs I find them mesmerising. Their singer performs in an invented language (long before Sigur Ros did the same) and they make the most beautiful soundscapes that make me feel like I've left Earth and gone to somewhere much more magical - listen to the song 'Donimo' from their Treasure album if you don't believe me.

Dear Boy: Dear Boy are a fairly new band who haven't put a full album out yet, but their self-titled EP is absolutely perfect. They have an 80s post-punk vibe crossed with the beauty of Death Cab For Cutie, and their song 'Funeral Wave' is the inspiration behind my blog's name. I listen to the EP every time I'm on my way home from a trip and I'm looking forward to having an album to add to the ritual.
Die Antwoord: I hated this group when I first heard them, but then I found their voices stuck in my head and quickly grew to love them. I've probably listened to Die Antwoord more than any other artist over the last year and they sound like nothing I've ever heard before. Their music is a mixture of rap and dance, performed in English and Afrikaans, with an aesthetic which mixes South African street culture with hip-hop parody to create something unique and impossible to look away from. The female half of the group, Yo-Landi, shines most on 'Cookie Thumper' and 'Rich Bitch', but her freaky style also makes her a Tumblr icon.

Elvis Presley: It's probably cliché to include Elvis but he put out so many great songs that I have to include him as my favourite E artist. I go through phases where I listen to more 50s and 60s music than anything else and I always make sure to seek out a couple more Elvis hits every time I'm in that mood. Music aside, there's so much mythology around the life and afterlife of the star that he makes for fascinating study.
Etta James: Etta is another artist from my 50s and 60s playlist and one who I don't have much to say about, other than that her voice on classics like 'At Last', 'Stormy Weather' and 'I Just Wanna Make Love To You' is incredible.

From First To Last: This is one of the bands I was most into during my teen emo phase (which hasn't really ended). I think their album Dear Diary My Teen Angst Has A Bodycount is a classic of the genre and I still keep up with them despite the fact that they've never really been able to top it. They're most well-known now for being the band that Sonny 'Skrillex' Moore rose to fame in, but songs like 'Note To Self' are endlessly quotable and I still love to hear them.
Fleetwood Mac: My mum liked this band and their album Rumours when she was young and I have to agree, it's a classic. A lot of their other material is hit or miss but I have to recommend that album to anyone who hasn't already heard it. Speaking purely of the female aspect to the band, I don't think I have to mention how iconic Stevie Nicks is.

Glassjaw: I almost put Green Day in here because they were so, so important to me growing up, but recently I've been really into Glassjaw so I wanted to talk about them for a change. They're the band I turn to when I'm angry or upset because Daryl Palumbo articulates his rage perfectly (even if his lyrics are really misogynistic). I bought both their albums recently and I'm only just getting to know their back catalogue but I have to recommend 'Lovebites and Razorlines', 'Ape Dos Mil', 'Cosmopolitan Bloodloss' and 'Motel of the White Locust', which are the songs I play on repeat the most often.
Gwen Stefani: I prefer No Doubt to Gwen's solo material but my N section is already spoken for.I love how diverse her back catalogue is, from feminist anthems like 'Just A Girl' to feel-good dance songs like 'Hey Baby' and the ridiculous 'Hollaback Girl', which I really hated at first and now love.

Head Automatica: This might be a cheat after including Glassjaw since they have the same singer but Head Automatica are the band I liked first when they put out 'Beating Heart Baby'. Recently I've obsessed with their song 'Laughing At You' but I think most of all I'm just in love with Daryl Palumbo's incredible voice.  
Hole: I grew up loving Celebrity Skin but more recently I've been delving into Live Through This a bit more and I really enjoy the whole concept of Hole. I also really love the Meadham-Kirchhoff couture collections which often take Courtney Love as their muse.

INXS: Currently one of 2 I artists on my iPod but still great, I avoided INXS as a kid because my dad was into them but then when I became obsessed with the movie The Lost Boys I ended up listening to the 2 songs that the band contributed to the soundtrack all the time. My favourite of their songs though is their most well-known, the super sexy 'Need You Tonight'.
Iggy Azalea: I know it's not cool to like Iggy Azalea but there's no denying that 'Fancy' is an amazing song, plus she made a great contribution to the Ariana Grande song I mentioned earlier.

Jay-Z: I used to avoid rap music when I was growing up goth but somewhere around the start of the decade I realised that some of the music in the charts, like 'On To The Next One' by Jay-Z, was actually pretty great. I don't know much of his output but I love 'No Church In The Wild' and the classic that is '99 Problems'.
Janet Jackson: Despite her being one of the most successful artists of the 80s I don't know that many of Janet's songs and I really need to listen to her some more, because the songs that I do know are excellent. My favourite is 'Scream' which she made with her brother Michael, but I also love her iconic solo hits 'Control', 'Nasty' and 'Rhythm Nation'.

Kanye West: I've started collecting Kanye's albums over the last few months and getting to know his music as well as his media persona, which is also fascinating. He has too many great songs for me to recommend all of the ones I love but if I had to pick favourites I'd include 'Bound 2', 'Everything I Am' and 'Can't Tell Me Nothing'.
Kate Bush: Totally different from Kanye West and almost everything else, I adore Kate Bush. Her sound and approach is so innovative and her albums and music videos are like works of art. I have different favourite songs of hers every few months but one mainstay is a beautiful b-side called 'Under The Ivy'.

Lostprophets: It's frowned upon to admit to liking Lostprophets these days knowing what kind of criminal behaviour their singer indulged in, but their early albums, especially Start Something, are too good to be ignored. If you can separate the music from the singer I'd recommend that album anytime, particularly the 10 minute closer, 'Sway', which is still one of my all-time favourite songs that I can never skip if it comes on.
Lana Del Rey: Lana is almost definitely my favourite discovery of the last couple of years. I adore everything she puts out and everything she doesn't put out that finds its way onto the Internet anyway. Her whole Old Hollywood aesthetic, particularly visible in the videos she put out for her album Born To Die, is captivating and I could listen to her sing all day long.

My Chemical Romance: MCR are one of the bands who were with me as I was growing up and although they're no longer with us I have fond memories surrounding them.Their breakthrough hits like 'I'm Not Okay (I Promise)' and 'Welcome To The Black Parade' were always played at the rock club I frequented as a young teen, their Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge black-and-red style was the template for my vampire-goth aesthetic in 2005, and towards the end of their time as a band I got to see them both at the start and finish of their run promoting their Danger Days album. Their music is a big nostalgia trip for me.
Mindless Self Indulgence: I first saw this band supporting My Chemical Romance in 2007 and I was hooked from that point. They were unlike anything I'd ever seen or heard before, combining hard rock with electronic beats, hip-hop vocals and day-glo outfits, and I spent much of 2008 obsessing over them. They're an on-off band now who tour sporadically, but I saw them last in 2013 and finally met the whole band, and I almost cried when I got to hug Lyn-Z.

Tune in again for the second half of my alphabet!