[Sarabeth here, back with some more jams to add to your iTunes library! Every Wednesday, I'm bringing you music suggestions - could be something new, old, hugely popular or fairly unknown -  to awesome-ify your  collection.]

Some of you will be happy to know that this week’s album is actually new for a change. Yay! Woo! Celebration!

Rarely do I get albums based off a random review I find on the internet. Ironic? Yes, but I usually wait until one of my friends has the album and I can listen to it or hear good things from them before I buy. Well, last Tuesday that all changed. While I was perusing the interwebs I came across a review for Cut Copy’s Zonoscope that piqued my curiosity. I gave it a little listen and let me tell you, I’ve changed my tune. No pun intended. (OK, so maybe the bad pun was totally intended, but whatever.)

About the Band:
Cut Copy is a synthpop band from Melbourne, Australia that’s been around since 2001. They currently consist of Dan Whitford, Tim Hoey, Mitchell Scott, and Ben Browning. Dan Whitford started it all a decade ago when he released the single 1981, and then started recruiting other members to join his musical project.

Top 3 Tracks:

Need You Now

Pharaoh’s & Pyramids

Sun God

Why You Should Listen to It:
The best way I can describe this album is that it’s an ’80s dance party that makes my heart happy. From great synth beats to Whitford’s deep soothing voice, this album makes it hard to sit still. I was listening to it at work today and it defintely made those four hours fly by, although I probably got some strange looks from my boss from dancing in my chair during Pharaoh’s & Pyramids. Anyways, if you’re looking for something to rid you of the winter blues, push you through that 45-minute stint on the treadmill or get you through another day at work, Zonoscope will hit the spot.

Want more awesome iPod suggestions? You got it!

Not only have you not started your holiday shopping, but you haven’t started that 20-page paper that’s due in 12 hours. Welcome to finals week! It’s the most stressful time of the year, where you get to play catch up on all the reading assignments you skipped for the past 4 months while you simultaneously study for 5 exams that happen within two days.

While some colleges like to add to your stress (thank you Bridgewater State for losing power while I was on page 16 of my un-saved 27-page paper), other colleges have started looking for creative ways to help students de-stress. Tufts University, for example, has begun bringing in cute, furry, slobbery pups for students to pet and play with as a way to mellow out during their mid-finals week meltdown. Cuddling up with a poodle sounds all well and grand, but I’m just not sure that’s enough to combat the stress ulcer forming in my belly.

So what can colleges do to really curb our ulcer-inducing stress? Here are 12 de-stressers I can get behind. Ommmm. Read More »

Every college student’s Saturday schedule is more or less the same: Waste half the day by sleeping until an inappropriately late hour. Stuff your face at the dining hall. Meet the girls for a pregaming/get-ready session and then roll with the punches as you walk out into the night, flask in hand.

While you never really know what the night has in store (except that you’re sure to wake up to embarrassing photos, unidentified bruises and amazing stories), there is a general progression of things, is there not?

The guys over at The Ultimate Hatelist made a little man graph, documenting the progression of activities on a typical Saturday night as one’s blood alcohol level increases.

And it got us thinking; we girls definitely have our own succession of events that come at distinct points as our BAC ticks upwards. While every night out is unique in it’s own way, we find comfort in knowing that the general sequence of events will always remain the same. No matter how sloppy we get. Read More »

I can’t even explain how. effing. ready. I. am for spring break. After missing sleep for two days because I had to finish a 10-page memoir for my last English elective, to missing “gym time” twice this week due to fatigue AND having to skip out on a midweek drink sesh with FREE BEER (!), I’m SO done.

But lucky for me (and you!) spring break is right around the corner. And even though I’m going north for the week (Hello, NYC / Boston!), I’m still super excited for a week of sleeping, drinking and, of course, dancing. Plus, it’s totally the music that makes the memories, you know? I’m sure you’ve been there. You’re just hanging out in some random living room with your friends when all of a sudden an old goodie comes on and you’re instantly transported back to that night you slow danced at the bar with some creeper. Or had your first kiss with your first love. Something like that.

So, I made my best effort to make a playlist complete with the newest, hottest spring break jams that I’m sure will be playing at all the bars and parties you crash that week. That way, years from now when you’re snuggling up with a new beau, one of these sexy jams will take you back to “that one time in college”…which we hope is a good thing.

Now, let’s get to drinking!

[Photo courtesy of www.breaknow.com]

You’ve finally moved out of the dorms, and it just so happens that your new diggs are the perfect place to throw a party. No RA’s, no quiet hours, no cramming 50 people into your tiny dorm and trying to have a dance party. Sweet!

Throwing a party might seem like a no-brainer. Still, you have make sure all of your bases are covered, or you’ll find people trickling out before midnight, hoping to catch another bigger, better party before the sun comes up and the night is a complete bust.

If you want to throw the party of the year–the one people are still talking about at graduation, the one people are still talking about at the reunion–just take heed of these simple cardinal rules. Read More »

The semester’s off and running, the weather’s getting worse, and next summer feels like an eternity. It’s easy to find your mood plummeting, your motivation waning, and your usually chipper self turning into a snappy betch. Misery has a snowball effect: you’re grumpy, and it rubs off on your roommate; you’re already in a bad mood, and walking into a pop quiz can set you over the edge. Before the blahs take over your body, take time to stop, breathe, recharge and rejuvenate. Here are five quick pick-me-ups to get you out of a funk.

1. Sleep: You’ve been up at the crack of dawn every morning to hit the gym, struggle to stay awake through three back-to-back classes, rush to your part-time job, and finally head home to tackle several hours worth of homework. Of course you’re feeling dreary! Lack of sleep can have adverse psychological effects– take it from a girl who is known to burst into tears at the slightest provocation after pulling an all-nighter or two– so even if you can’t fit in a full eight hours of sleep a night, treat yourself to a long, comatose nap. When you wake up, you’ll be more energetic and alert, so it might even boost your studying stamina later in the week.

2. Treat Yourself: You’ve been running on empty for weeks, neglecting yourself in order to make a good impression on your professors, sorority sisters, friends, coworkers, etc. Do something nice for yourself. If you have some extra cash, buy yourself a new outfit. If you think you look good, you’re bound to feel good, too. Low on cash? Scrape together some change and download a couple of jams on i-Tunes. I mean, they’re only 99 cents most of the time– you deserve it! Get a track that will raise your spirits, like Flo Rida’s “In the Ayer,” DJ Laz’s “Move, Shake, Drop Remix” or, for a bubblegum pop sound, The Orion Experience’s “Obsessed with You.” Then, crank up your speakers and have your own personal dance party for a few minutes. It’ll be worth it. Read More »

You only have a few days left to submit your entries for CollegeCandy’s Welcome Week iHome Giveaway!

Want the deets? Read on, my friend.

If there is one thing we at CollegeCandy miss most about actually being in college it’s Welcome Week. (And our parents footing the bills.) 7 full days of debauchery, warm weather and nothing else to do makes for one pretty awesome time.

Want to stay up all night playing Kings and eating Doritos? Go ahead!

Want to pack up the car and take a trip to the beach for the day? Why not?

Want to fill a pool with Jell-O and wrestle around in it while your friends watch and cheer you on? You got nothin’ else goin on..

Sigh.

We want to do those things too, but unfortunately we have to go to “work” and “be adults.” But that doesn’t mean we can’t live vicariously through you lucky ladies (and give away a sweet prize at the same time!). So, we are having a contest.

Send us your best/funniest/most hilarious/ridiculous photos from Welcome Week. (Yeah, including that one of you climbing the school’s famed fountain in your dress.) We will pick our favorites, post ‘em to the site and have the readers vote on which one is the best. If you or your friends don’t wanna see your faces on the interwebs, feel free to block em out. We don’t care; we just wanna pretend like we are right there with you.

If your picture is chosen, you will win a free iHome.

Free.

Sent to you.

To use for those awesome pre-party dance parties. Or to muffle out the sounds of your roommate doing the naughty, naughty.

All entries should be sent to editor@collegecandy.com and must be received by Friday, September 5th at 1:00 PM. We will post our favorites the following Monday and voting will last until Friday, September 12th. Tell your friends. Tell their friends. Just don’t tell your family.

We will announce the winner on the site (picture and all) on Monday, September 15th, at which point we will send your tubular (we are trying to bring that word back) iHome to you.

So chug that beer, grab that camera and enjoy Welcome Week (for us!).