A. Siswanto

http://grooveshark.com/playlist/Arvien+s+Playlist/77732702

So this weeks topic was to post a video, slideshow, or a playlist. Honestly I thought doing the songs would be the least time consuming so I just did that. Everyone here pretty much wrote that “music is  life” or that it helps them get through tough times but honestly, I just like listening to music. I can bump to a lot of things except songs that are TOO extreme. You know what I’m talking about, rock music with TOO much screaming, rap music that’s TOO dirty, and country music’s that TOO…well, country. So i guess I’m an average listener, pretty much bopping my head to anything that sounds good to me.

The songs I chose are or were songs I could listen to over and over and over again. They’re from artists spanning across all different genres and sounds but they all come together for a playlist I made.

The first song on there is PSY’s “Oppa Gangnam Style”. Yes, I like this song, so what? At first I didn’t know what this guy was saying and then I looked a bit more into it with the English translations, but I still really don’t know what this guy is saying. But if I had to summarize it, he’s basically telling a girl that he’s different from a lot of other guys and that the girl he’s talking about is unique as well. The video makes absolutely no sense but it’s pretty fun to watch. I like PSY because in a market dominated by pretty-boys, comes along this pudgy looking guy that makes an overnight international hit. Plus this guy had two of his earlier albums banned in Korea, making him pretty badass in my book.

The next song on the list is “Gravity” by John Mayer. I like a stripped-down. slow jam to listen to every once in a while and John Mayer definitely delivers. His voice really compliments the electric guitar in the back and I like the live version better because he does a lot of improvisation which is what makes a good concert artist.

The next song is “Internet Songs” by Knife Party. This is actually one of the only songs I know from them but it’s just a really fun house song to listen to. It’s got a lot of humor in it which I like in my music as well as a catchy beat. House music is something I recently got into and the reason why I fell in love with it is the culture. The environment at raves and these huge, sold-out festivals is really inviting and everyone just wants to have a good time.  Most of the time it’s due to illegal drugs but still, an inviting scene.

Lastly we have Frank Ocean’s “Super Rich Kids”. I think he absolutely killed it on this track, and he creates this kind of perfectly crafted story that I really don’t get from much artists. Earl Sweatshirt features on this one making this song an instant classic.