May playlist! Just in time for June!
Yes, I know I'm posting a May playlist and it's now the first week of June, but seasons all blend together in Boston, so why would months matter?
Before I get into my playlist though, I just wanted to give a quick shoutout to my friend Ian Schon's Clip Pen Kickstarter, which I wrote about in my last post. He started out with a goal of a humble $1,000. As of today, he's raised $37,000, which is mind boggling. I guess people really love metal pens!
On to the music.
Once again we're thwarted from a nice user experience of being able to play it in this browser by Squarespace not supporting Apple Music embeds. My iTunes won't open on my laptop as of today though, so I'm not really sure I support Apple Music right now either.
Anyway, here's a link.
This month's playlist started off a little listlessly, with just a bunch of random new songs that I was enjoying. After last month's playlist being quite heavy on a few specific artists, I was in the mood for a little upbeat variety — which granted, doesn't explain the Father John Misty song on there.
But then Harry Styles' album came out, and everything went to pot. You think you know a member of One Direction, and then bam, he puts out one of my favourite albums ever. The opening track was just so unlike anything I could've possibly imagined he'd release, and the riff on the chorus is just a heady massage.
There are just a couple of tracks on his debut that skew a little too radio-friendly for my liking, but he more than makes up for those ones with some more experimental numbers — like Only Angel, which kicks you in the ribcage after an angelic opening buildup — and some that are just an adrenaline rush from start to finish, like Kiwi. Said adrenaline rush was on full view when he went in James Corden's car for Carpool Karaoke.
As a good British sadboi, my favourites were the more sensitive ones, like Meet Me in the Hallway, Ever Since New York, and From the Dining Room Table. But almost the whole album is on there, so do take a listen.
Other highlights for me included a new single from Ten Tonnes, who has a great deep voice and a knack for an ear worm of a chorus. There are a few tracks from bands I was excited to see at Boston Calling at the end of the month, like Whitney, Mumford and Sons, and Moses Sumney (the latter of which I discovered as the backing music to the behind-the-scenes video from Brad Pitt's emotional GQ Style photoshoot). And there's Come On Eileen, because I was singing it pretty much all month.
I hope you enjoy! Like I said, May's playlist was lacking a little cohesion, but it was largely due to my mind being so many places with graduation, friends leaving, and the impending doom of adulthood / the end of the world. Next month's will have a lot more rock elements to it. Lia and I went to Boston Calling at the end of May, and had such a great time.
We saw people like Chance the Rapper (who was flawless), Bon Iver (it started raining while they played), Mitski, and Car Seat Headrest, and I came away from the festival most enamoured with the rock bands. I've been in such a long electronic and R&B/rap phase that live music created by humans with instruments in their hands is strangely refreshing to my ears. We also saw Michael Kiwanuka play a few days later, who's another talented guy with a guitar. But I think it's fair to blame Mr Styles for my new rock leanings. Next time, on Serial!
