Tag: Incubus

#32

Picking songs for this week’s playlist was relatively easy since several of them were pre-planned.

Here’s playlist #32 for you- 

First off is Ben Howard with Oats In The Water.Ben Howard

My brother decided to download Ben Howard’s discography recently and then made me listen to a few tracks I hadn’t heard yet. Oats In The Water was the first of those and I loved it instantly!

The song is rather melancholy, but I think that’s the beauty of it. Ben Howard’s voice is very haunting through the verses.

The exact meaning of the song is very hard to decipher, but my guess is it talks about living for yourself and not following someone else’s path.

The Black Crowes1989 band The Black Crowes now for you with their cover of Sympathy For The Devil.

Sympathy For The Devil is a song by The Rolling Stones. Written and sung by Mick Jagger, the song is an homage to Satan, written in the first-person narrative from the point of view of Lucifer, who recounts the atrocities committed throughout the history of humanity in his name.

The Crowes’ cover of Sympathy For The Devil is from an amazing 2-CD set of Stones covers spread out through the years called ‘The Crowing Stones’.

I think you’ll find this version is awesome in it’s own ways.

A friend and I have this relationship where we just share music with each other, and sometime back he shared with me this-  The Suburbs by ArcadeArcade Fire Fire. I loved it so much, I watched the video three times straight and had the song stuck in my head for the next two days. I have no idea why it took me so long to put it on a playlist. It’s here now anyway.

‘The Suburbs’ is the third studio album by the Canadian indie rock band, released in August 2010.  It won Album of the year at the 2011 Grammy Awards, Best International Album at the 2011 BRIT Awards, Album of the Year at the 2011 Juno Awards, and the 2011 Polaris Music Prize for best Canadian album.

Sacha Baron CohenSome fun music for you now. I decided to give you I Like To Move It by Sacha Baron Cohen.(It’s the version from the movie Madagascar).

I am a sucker for animation, and Madagascar’s first and second parts are a big favourite. I remember listening to the version of I Like To Move It from the first movie over and over after watching it. King Julien being a very dear character, the song is even more amusing to me.

I hope this adds some quirk and makes you smile.

Ventura Highway now for you by the popular 70s band America. The track is from the band’s second album America‘Homecoming’, released in 1972.

An interesting story about this song- Dewey Bunnell, the song’s vocalist and writer, has said that the lyric “alligator lizards in the air” in the song is a reference to the shapes of clouds in the sky he saw in 1963 while his family was driving down the coast where they had a flat tire. While his father changed the tire, he and his brother stood by the side of the road and watched the clouds and saw a road sign for “Ventura”.

IncubusThis song’s been on my mind a lot for a while but I just didn’t find the right playlist for it. I’m talking about Wish You Were Here by Incubus.

Not to be confused with Pink Floyd’s title track Wish You Were Here from their ninth studio album; Incubus’ song has special relevance of it’s own.

The track is a lead single from the band’s fourth album ‘Morning View’. Released in late summer 2001 it peaked at #2 on the Modern Rock and #4 on the Mainstream Rock Charts that year, and is one of the band’s most well known songs.

Earth Song now from Michael Jackson’s  HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I.Michael Jackson

Earth Song is a ballad that incorporates elements of blues, gospel and opera. Jackson had a long-standing history of releasing socially conscious material. However, Earth Song was the first that overtly dealt with the environment and animal welfare and centered on the destruction and rebirth of Earth.

The track went on to receive a Grammy nomination in 1997.

That brings me to the close of playlist #32. I hope you enjoy listening to the tracks I’ve shared with you. I’ll be back with more in a week or so.

Happy Listening!

#3

This week’s post is out early. I’m writing this while plugged in and listening to the following playlist I’ve made. A little pointless fact; I was at song #5 while typing this sentence.

Also, I’ve picked out not 5, but 7 songs for this week. Why? Because there were just too many songs I was looking forward to sharing.

I decided to start this week’s playlist off with a nice modern alternative rock track- Incubus with Nice To Know You. Incubus

Nice To Know You was the second single from the 2001 album Morning View. I think what’s most impressive about this track is the constant time signature switch from 7/4 to 4/4. It’s pretty confusing, but brilliantly executed. That, coupled with Brandon Boyd’s Oh So Perfect powerful and expressive voice make this a track worth several listens.

Jason MrazAhh.. Jason Mraz. The man with the smooth voice and an even smoother strumming style. I’ve heard maybe 6 or 7 songs by him so far and I’ve loved each of them for different reasons. Be Honest is one that has this gentle unwinding effect on you, no matter how you choose to listen to it.

I actually love listening to Mraz on ear phones. The clarity in his voice amplified, it always feels like I’m sitting in front of him, watching him perform a song, indifferent to who’s watching. (Sure, maybe being a woman has something to do with that experience :D)

Pink Floyd is one of those bands you should have heard of and listened to no matter what genrePink Floyd of music you prefer. In my experience, they grow on you. Their music grows on you. And then you’re feeding on it for the rest of your life.

The song Welcome To The Machine, from the very popular 1975 album Wish You Were Here, is one that I grew to like, and now love.

The very unique thing about Pink Floyd’s music is their use of random noises, mostly eerie, in nearly all their tracks. And the curious thing is, at least for me, those noises are what complete the music.

Welcome To The Machine is definitely a heavy song. Heavy in terms of the effect it has on your mind. It’s not very pleasant, it leaves you disturbed no matter how many times you listen to it, but then it leaves you wanting to listen to it again. And again.

As you’ve probably figured, my brother and I share a lot of music. Our tastes are nearly the same so that helps too.

Skunk AnansieI have no idea how he came across the Brit band Skunk Anansie, but he’s the reason I know about them. This song Hedonism is probably their most popular. It’s catchy because it has this unique tune to it. It’s a brilliant tune actually, that will continue to play in your head all day long. It’s also got great lyrics.

The fifth song on this week’s playlist is one Jimmy Eat Worldthat you’ve probably heard before. I decided to add it anyway because it’s a great song.

The Middle by Jimmy Eat World, is a nicely written track, well balanced in all respects. I love the lyrics, they give the song a general positive feeling. Jim Adkins has a very impressive voice and sounds great throughout the track. I like the transition between clean and heavy through the verses and chorus. It sort of magnifies the energy in the song without actually overdoing it.

Damien RiceThere’s a lot I just found out about Damien Rice while doing my research for this post. I knew he was Irish, but didn’t know his musical background was so extensive. I also didn’t know he was an activist. He’s got quite a few campaigns and charitable projects listed under his name for which he has generously contributed. Good man.

I’ve only heard two songs by him. One of which is obviously Cannonball. But that’s not the one I’m sharing with you today. I’m sharing Lonelily.

I’ll admit I didn’t like this song for some reason the first time I heard it. But after having listened to it a few more times, I found I really dig it. That acoustic guitar sound, Rice’s very distinct voice, and the constant hum at the back of it all makes Lonelily a really nice sounding track.

The last song on today’s playlist is one by the very popular Grunge band Pearl Jam.Pearl Jam

Black is the fifth track from their debut album Ten.

It’s the first song I ever heard by Pearl Jam. I was really young and heard it so many times that I still remember its lyrics and musical direction pretty accurately.

Listening to it right now, I’m thinking, technically this song has a simple musical structure. Most of the difficulty lies in the vocals and Eddie Vedder is simply a brilliant performer. His vocal abilities are pretty accurate. He nails those emotions and tonal modulations so effortlessly, or so he makes it seem.

So that brings me to the end of this week’s post. As always, I do hope you enjoy the playlist. Do leave a comment or drop in a word through e-mail, I’d love to hear from you.

Happy listening!