Spotify Me Part 3: A Playlist in the Rye

Spotify Me Part 3: A Playlist in the Rye

Mark’s Discover Weekly Playlist for 9/14/2015

So, as I have stated in previous articles, I do most of my Spotify listening in the car. It's An important part of my routine. However, an unexpected villain arose into my routine this week: Tumblr. Tumblr can be a problem for any number of reasons, none of which I will bring up here. But this week the issue boiled down to this: That app drinks data like the 100 year drought just ended. I ended up using all the Data I had before this week even started. Because of this, this weeks article required significantly more legwork than usual. I ended up printing out the playlist, and searching the songs on youtube whenever I had the chance, or could be near my laptop to use the computer version of Spotify. But I did it, and it was well worth the time. 

I also need to make it known that this is the second time, two weeks in a row, that I have had a song on my playlist that had the word "skeletons" somewhere in the title. I don't know what Spotify is trying to tell me, but my guard is raised. I have consumed milk and heightened my calcium levels. Ball in your court skeletons. 

Fever Ray
ETCETC music

If I Had a Heart – Fever Ray

This is actually the first song that came up on my playlist for the week, and the only song I listened to in my car. I got about half way through it, but had to turn it off due to fear of Data overages. But as soon as I arrived at my destination, I hopped on wifi and listened to the whole thing. The song is dark, sinister, and haunting. It opens with one, low tone which never leaves. There is no drop, and it never gets louder. Everything stays just where it needs to be to create its atmosphere. After that the lyrics come in, but there aren’t very many. However, the message they convey runs right along with the tones of the instruments. The words can seem vague, but they all point to the singer’s corruption due to their overwhelming greed and lust for more. The singers no longer have a heart or voice, having filled themselves instead with what they have consumed. This song is a dark, captivating warning of the corrupting power of desire.

Red
Weebl's Stuff Records

The Driver – Savlonic

When things get serious in a relationship, it can get scary. Sometimes it can be hard to admit you feel so strongly about someone. It’s a feeling most people have had, which is what makes this a relatable song. It captures that fear and anxiety of deciding whither or not to stay in a relationship. The singer has left, but certain things like an empty gas tank and the wallet he forgot tie him to what he is trying to leave. And even though he states he simply forgot the wallet, the girl sees his wallet has been left next to his heart, which is not so easy to forget. The music does a good job of hitting this tone, never quite happy, never quite sad. It strikes somewhat of an aloof tone, floating in the air. This works well when the singer explains all the things he does to convince himself he doesn’t care. The electronic tones are catchy, and both singers have great voices. It’s an enjoyable song that has managed to get stuck in my head a few times over the week.

Ta-Dah
Polydor and Universal
Motown records

I Can’t Decide – Scissor Sisters

This is another dark song, but in a much different way. The song adopts a light, happy, and playful tone, which is overshadowed by dark sinister lyrics. You know how in a dark forest, your eyes adjust, and eventually the area isn’t so bad? But then your jerk friend who has never been camping before turns on a flashlight and the forest becomes darker in contrast to that one dimly lit portion, making the area seem almost more frightening? That is the light that the playfulness of this song casts over the terrifying words describing a man’s inability to decide the fate of a victim. The singer hits on several great themes: justification, paranoia, anger, and of course, murder. Meanwhile, the instrumentals include an actual slide whistle. I have liked the Scissor Sisters for a while now, having first heard this song in an episode of Doctor Who. One of their songs, Don’t Feel Like Dancing, was ironically featured in a Just Dance game. Their music is great, upbeat, and fun to listen to, even if it does tread into some darker themes.

The Last Werewolf
Six Degrees Records

Me and Mr. Wolf – The Real Tuesday Weld

Back along the darker route, we turn to a tale of doomed love. Mr. Wolf is of course trying to convince a Red-Riding-Hood character to take part in a love affair. The girl insists that this is a bad idea that it would never work out; claiming that for them to be together one will have to die. However, the lyrics of the song seem to be hinting that Red is not the one who is in danger. The song is fun, with a catchy tune, sleazy atmosphere, and great vocals. The chorus of the song has a wonderful melody that is sincere in nature. The song leans towards a city blues feel with great piano work, and include an instrumental break that features clarinet heavily. This song was for sure stuck in my head all week, and not even in a bad way. I need to be careful because I have a tendency to listen to songs I like so much I end up hating them, and it would be a shame if this song came to that fate.

2Nite
EP by TWRP

The Hit – TWRP, Ninja Sex Party

This song is Rock meets Disco meets Daft Punk meets and 80’s arcade and I love it. It’s great jamming or grooving music, the kind of song you would expect to hear right after a guy tells you he’s going to defeat you with the power of music. I have always been upset that my generation missed out on disco, because awkward dancing seems like a scene I really could have gotten into. But its good to know that even more modern music is still able to pull inspiration from that golden age of groove. Other parts of the song include your classic confession of love lyrics, and a backup singer with a robotic voice making some choice interjections. It’s a great collaboration effort between the two bands involved. After listening to the song several times, I then continued to then watch the music video where the band literally defeats the bad guy with the power of music.

Close Enough
DetErMine Records

Closer – The Tiny

Once again, this song has previously been featured on the Welcome to Night Vale podcast as The Weather. I don’t know who runs that part of their show, but I bet they’re really cool. This song is a song of need, and hope, and love. It touches on that loneliness anyone can feel, and the need to have that certain someone closer to you. The song is simple, sweet, and sincere. The singers voice has a quality you only hear in this style of music, a sound that crescendos and fades as the emotions of the song shift. IT is never made clear whither the person the singer is pining over, is their lover or someone they wish was their lover. The idea is so relatable that you can feel the pain that the singer feels. It’s a beautiful quiet song that doesn’t ask for attention; you have to find it.

(The album artwork in this article is not owned by the authors of this blog, but by the producers of the albums themselves.)