A Playlist, And All That Entails

This list of ten songs were actually chosen pretty carefully, no matter how random or generic the choices may seem. It’s just that it’s a pretty impossible task to try to describe your life within ten songs that could have any matter of content within them – but the ten that ended up making the cut create together a rather unflattering, awkward, and misguided portrait. So it seems that I succeeded, at least in part. The songs themselves have several binding ties, the greatest being their very tone and sound – which convey stories about nerves, anxiety, and general social illiteracy, so the playlist did it’s job in capturing a bit of me. 

The first even, “Blister In The Sun” by the Violent Femmes, with its title and main recurring chorus lyric (When I go walking I strut my stuff and I’m so strung out), and it just exudes restrictions and unease. That and I refuse to wear caps in the summer, so this actually rings more realistic bells. This goes further within “Forget Myself” by Elbow in a more explicit and clear sequence – ie. (Do you move through the room with a glass in your hand?/Thinking too hard about the way you stand?). Which is in fact something I do a lot of both literally and metaphorically. Trying to be aware of how one appears to the rest of the world, it’s not a proud trait, but it’s an exhausting one.

Of course not to the extent that the next song, “Flagole Sitta” by Harvey Danger, takes it – which is why I placed it here – to show the extreme and the thing that I try to avoid. Also it’s the theme song to a show called “Peep Show”, which features a character who reminds me of a hyper-exaggerated version of myself – and who would take this song’s lyrics to heart. Besides who hasn’t felt like (Paranoia, paranoia, everyone’s coming to get me/Pretend you never met me) once in a while? Pulp’s “Like A Friend” and Blue Swede’s “Hooked On A Feeling” are both tied to my simple tendency to get lost in whatever fixation I have at the moment, – a movie, a song, maybe some random assortment of words (hyperbole). Sometimes it’s detrimental, sometimes it’s not, and sometimes it’s detrimental.  (You are the car I never should have bought…the train I never should have caught).

Of course one cannot ignore the rather overt and blatant theme that has been running through all of the songs so far, it’s pretty in your face. But I’m going to so let’s move on. In comparison to the rest of the playlist “Out Of Time Man” by Mano Negra is actually a very simple one, as it simply represents my rather retentive need for order and more specifically just not being late. Losing track of time is a very worrying thing especially with the trains and crowds, so this reflects a sort of commuter’s plight. (Time don’t do it again/Now I’m stressed and strained/With my anger and pain on this subway train).The next three songs, “The Two Sides of Monsieur Valentine” (Spoon), “Wolf Like Me” (TV On The Radio), and “Can’t Hardly Wait” (The Replacements), are grouped together into being basic escapist fantasies.

The first song stating things pretty much outright (Every morning I get a new chance/I want to land the part of Eddie in The Stranger Dance), while the other two simply in their beat and the energy they exude. Meaning the sort of familiar irregularity, the fun, which I want to see more of in life. The tenth song, “Lighten Up Morrissey”, is really only there for an out of context reason. It was written as a joke by the band about one of their friends, the Morrissey of the title, and that just goes to say that even if you’re being self-deprecatory you can still have a laugh about it. Learn to take a joke. (I’ve got comparisons coming out my ears/And she can never hit the pause).