welp. here we are. march is almost over - better late than never to post this, i guess! i believe it is a universal truth to say it was an awkward start to 2020. i felt like i was consciously living every day of 2019, but as soon as 2020 hit - january flew by, followed quickly by february, and then march happened. now we’re all trapped inside. and you know what? i have entirely welcomed it. i have needed this time to catch up, strategize an action plan for my creative business, revisit what motivates me, and give this little dream of mine a final push. i say final because, i’ll never have an opportunity like this one again - for it to be socially acceptable to be isolated from the world, and putting all of my back energy into ME. all i can say is, yay! i’m loving it. and in the spirit of being selfish, let’s kick this sound list off with my rediscovery of morrissey . . .
The Smiths - “Shoplifters of the World Unite” from Louder Than Bombs, released 1987.
when i can’t find new music i like (which again - is often), i turn to the musical icons of the past. if i remember correctly, i simply had a hankering to listen to “how soon is now”, and the next thing i knew, i had fallen down the morrissey rabbit hole. his run-on lyrics are hypnotic … like they’ve been torn straight from his diary. poetic and raw and blatantly self-centered. he’s an interesting guy. i’m intrigued by his life - shrouded in mystery. every song is charged with genuine emotion. i went on a repeat binge from “how soon is now”, to “suedehead”, to “the last of the famous international playboys”, to “heaven knows” before i landed on “shoplifters”. i can imagine all the angsty teens (probably hanging around Hot Topic) fueled by this ballad.
Jonathan Bree - “Valentine” from Sleepwalking, released 2018.
i’m beginning to believe new zealand produces quite a few artistic goodies… jonathan bree is definitely different, and at first listen, i wasn’t exactly sold. for some reason, i kept listening, and began loving almost every song. of course, listening to valentine in february was fitting - it’s whimsical and fun, and i love the kitschy karaoke aesthetic of the music video. “you’re so cool” and “weird hardcore” are some of my other favorites. however, as i say all this, i understand that, like the cheese, bree might not be for everyone…
Tame Impala - “Lost in Yesterday” from The Slow Rush, released 2020.
speaking of valentine’s day… the much-anticipated new album was released on february 14th of this year… and i was expecting tame impala to go all out for me. but he didn’t. is it my fault he’s set the bar so high with albums past?! nevertheless, “lost in yesterday”, one of the only songs that grabbed me, was on repeat for almost two weeks. “patience” and “borderline”, which were released earlier, continue to be some of my other favorites from the album. even though i was let down by this album, tame impala will always be one of my favorite artists. his music is fitting for road trips, cooking dinner, cleaning the house, background music for when we all can have our friends over again…
thanks for reading & happy listening