This week’s tunes are pretty spectacular. They represent the ups and downs I’ve been feeling, for sure.
Lockdown is quite lonely isn’t it? Even if you’re doing it with loved ones there’s just so much time to be just you and your brain. You make promises to yourself, you break them, you love yourself, you berate yourself. God it’s a roller coaster.
Anyway, you can find the ever growing 2.0 playlist here and the OG playlist here.
- Opening the curtains to sun
One More Time – Daft Punk
I’m sure you all heard the news. They’ve been around for a year longer than I have existed and have finally hung up their helmets. They pioneered electronic music for 27 years – it’s a pretty good run. They’re absolute legends and while I’m gutted to see them go I feel actually really lucky to have had them all through my life. I could have chosen ANY of their tracks and it would have been the right one. We will always love these crazy French cats.
- The Friday evening final push
Back to Earth – SG Lewis
You know the feeling – it’s 5pm and you’ve still got quite a lot of work to do but you know that when it’s done, you’re done. This album was released a few weeks ago and it kind of fascinates me… I like it, I really like it and I like this song but there’s a reason I’ve put this dance track as a backing track to doing work; you don’t quite lose yourself to it. It’s kind of calculated. It’s funky in the textbook sense but not in the soulful sense. Does that make sense? Probably not. Just bob your head along and look forward to a fun evening.
- Scaring off the Sunday morning blues on the balcony
Can’t Nobody Love You – Solomon Burke
Oh my word that voice. That soulful, sweet voice. He’s better known for Cry To Me but I love this song for its bluesy tears and soulful backing singers. I love Sundays for their slow movement and how anything you do on a Sunday is a huge achievement but they also remind me that time is passing by. Another week gone, ya know – time to turn the soul on and let it all sink in.
- Sunday afternoon sun
Music – Carole King
I always end up putting this record on on a Sunday afternoon. I’d done a workout, I’d cleaned the house, I’d been to the garden centre – I just want to enjoy the moment. I feel like this song is Carole King enjoying the moment. It’s kind of about nothing and yet it’s about everything. “Ah it’s not always easy but the music keeps playing I won’t let the world get me down.”
- Coming up for breath
Articulate Silences, Pt 1 – Stars of the Lid
You might expect this sort of music (or soundscape, as the nerds call it) to be what you need just before going to bed – and it is incredible for that – but for me, it works wonders for clearing my head mid morning. You’ve been tapping away at your emails for a few hours and yet there’s so much more screen time to come. Just taking a moment to breathe and be present works wonders for my energy. I’m not a morning person. My energy kicks in at about 4pm at the moment so I have to do everything I can to be useful in the am. It is so, so peaceful.
- Walking home from Physio, praying this time it works
Holding On – The War on Drugs
For those of you that know me and speak to me often, I’m sorry, yes I’m talking about my goddamn knee again. I had a good physio session the other day where I think he decided he wasn’t going to take any of my shit. We’ve been working on my knee for over a year and nothing has worked but he told me to get out of my head and just trust him. When I left the clinic that day my knee felt better than it had in ages. There’s a lot to be said for the brain getting in the way. I still believe I’ll run again. Ps – how much do we love The War on Drugs?!
- Going to bed happy despite having had a shite day
We Might As Well Dance – Madeleine Peyroux
Well guys, I thought Madeleien Peyroux was French. I just did. No idea why now I think about it – probably just the name. She has a dusty, smooth jazz voice and usually does much more jazzy tunes than this but this is quite an uplifting ditty that I’ve been holding onto this week. It sounds like something an older Van Morrison could have written. Guys, this is all crap but we might as well bloody dance.
- Strutting home as you clutch your fifty quid’s worth of garden centre purchases
Schoolin’ Life – Beyoncé
The people’s queen. I was just looking at which year this album was released and realised something deeply profound – she performed at Glastonbury the night before this album was released. And I. Was. There. No wonder it rouses something within me. 2011 – I went to Glastonbury with just £15 to my name… I wasn’t even 18. I wasn’t wildly happy at that age but I think I always knew more was coming. I think that’s the feeling this brings me. More is coming.