It Takes Some Pluck

"Don't Try" - Everything EverythingEverything Everything started my November. They were my get-riled-up music on the way to a November 1st Halloween party where I knew hardly anyone. I knew the host, one of the first friends I made, and one other person. The rest were people I had no idea who they were, or people that I knew of, but did not know. I almost didn't go. I had to work late, therefore arrive late, and that combined with the lack of friends was... a bit daunting. But knowing that the only way to make friends was to force myself upon people, off I went. It was actually this song (which is on a previous mix) that got me bouncing and riled to begin with, but the whole album is pretty darn glorious. And I continued to listen to them throughout the month, with Don't Try really grabbing me with the lyrics this time. Some songs you don't notice 'til the 2nd or 3rd go-round, and this was one of them.

"Rafstraumur (Cyril Hahn Remix)" - Sigur Rós
Another band I listened to a lot of this month was Sigur Rós, mostly their album Kveikur. In the beginning when I was walking to work on the early mornings, it was enough to help me wake up, but in a gentler fashion. However it was thanks to Spotify that I found out there was a remix of this particular song. I learned of it maybe a month or two prior, but... things are forgotten. And then when I was going through and trying to figure out which particular song I wanted for this month's mix I re-found this and got all giddy on the inside.

"Knock You Out" - Tiësto feat. Emily Haines
This and the next three or four songs after can be attributed to the people I've met this month, some directly, some indirectly. One of my coworkers is very much into the EDM scene and she wrote me two pages worth of music to check out. That.... takes time. I've known about Tiësto but never really took the time to look into his stuff. So, she shoved me over the fence a little bit and then lo' and behold he's done songs with Emily Haines from Metric and Jónsi? Okay, you have my attention! I love Emily's voice in this, and not gonna lie, the lyrics are good too.

"Beam Me Up (Kill Mode) (Original Mix)" - Cazzette
This was another one on the list. I had seen ads for them when they first were on Spotify, but I never checked them out. Very catchy, and, I very much remember listening to them at a LAN party to drown out a fellow gamer who was playing what I believe was Miley Cyrus (or something similar) on his laptop speakers. Cazzette was very effective.

"Call On Me (Radio Edit)" - Eric Prydz
This artist was on the list from my coworker, but before I actually got around to looking into his stuff, a friend I made at the Halloween party  (that I thankfully went to) sent me this over Facebook in what has now become some sort of music video tag/war/epidemic? Regardless, I watched it on my break at work and then it was on repeat in my head for the rest of the way. Of course.

"Stay Awake" - Madeon feat. Ellie Goulding
This I actually found on my own, but because of my coworker and friend. I notice there was a fair amount of music on Soundcloud (Remixes of Everything Everything's Don't Try being one of those things) so I made an account and started exploring. I came across Madeon and saw not only had they remixed a Pendulum song, but also collaborated with Ellie Goulding. I fell in love a little bit.

"The City" - The 1975
Another artist I was introduced to by my friend via the Facebook game of video tag. I was actually sent this video which prompted me to look into the rest of their stuff and then I ended up listening to them for a whole week straight with nothing else. That voice though...

"Trojans" - Atlas Genius
This is one that seems to be popular on the radio around here, but I don't mind. The first time I was like, oh, hmm, not bad. But it grew on me every time I heard it until I needed it in my library, not just on the radio. And I mean, c'mon. Handclaps you guys. You can't resist handclaps. So many times I heard them while driving, and made a mental note to look them up when I got home. And, well. You know how mental notes go.... But I got around to it eventually!


Honourable mentions:


"Sweater Weather" - The Neighbourhood
The first time I heard this song, was via a friend on Twitter. Interestingly, this friend on Twitter is probably one of my longest running internet friends. I found him way back in the day of College, or possibly even late High School years. Back when AIM and ICQ and Xanga were all things you did. I met him once, in real life, many years later in Chicago, and I really don't remember much of it other than constantly laughing, and watching a plastic bag drift over the Chicago River. And honestly, those memories are enough to know that that was a good day. The other thing about this song, is the lyrics. When I heard the opening lines, I was disappointed because I wanted to love the song, but I love beaches and California, and it's not too cold here. However, I am finding out that California does indeed get cold enough to make me shiver. And despite my disagreement with parts of it, I still love the song.



"The Middle" - Jimmy Eat World
There are so many stories behind this song, and part of the reason I left this as honourable mention, is so I could make it the last story I tell in this installment. Although this song is more of a beginning than an end. First and foremost, I've heard this song on the radio here multiple times. But not only that, it's seemed to come on the radio during times that I needed to hear it. Ultimately, this song is why I'm where I am now. When it was first released, I heard it on the radio and fell in love. I bought the album immediately, and continued to fall in love with each and every song. I studied the lyrics. I brought the CD to an overnight at a friends house and listened to it while reading the lyrics. And then, I read the thanks. And I saw all these bands mentioned, and I went on a freaking music rampage. I looked up every band listed in the liner notes and listened to at least one song from each. And it was just a domino effect. This song opened my eyes to a whole new range of music that I never knew existed and I just dove straight into that rabbit hole and never came back. And I'm thankful for it every second of the day. I owe this song A LOT.